In Cyprus education is taken very seriously. Most children are brought up understanding the importance of education and all the benefits that come with obtaining a schooling education. It is safe to assume that majority of the Cypriot parents also encourage their children to further their education on a higher level, be it a university, collage or higher institution.

Similar to most European countries, Cyprus follows a four 4 stage education: pre-primary, primary, secondary and higher/tertiary.

Firstly a child will attend pre-school. This is from the age of four till five. There are three types of pre-schools namely Public nursery schools, Communal nursery schools and Private nursery schools. All these schools comply with the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education and Culture.

In the Public nursery schools, they are established by the Ministry of Education and Culture while cooperating with parents and community authorities. The Ministry of Education and Culture appoints the teaching staff and provides the equipment. The parents' associations and community authorities are responsible for the buildings and basic equipment.

In the Communal nursery schools the school is established and run by the parents' associations or community authorities. The Ministry of Education and Culture contributes with a yearly subsidy. The parents' associations or community authorities appoint the staff under the supervision of the Ministry of Education and Culture.

The Private nursery schools are run by individuals and are not subsidised by the Ministry of Education yet still are compliant to the laws stipulated by the Ministry of Education.

After pre-school is completed the second phase begins. The Primary Education which is a 6 year programme begins. The age to enter this school is 5 years and 8 months. In public schools the education is free, including text books and writing material. In private schools, payment is required for school fees, text books and writing material.

At the age of 11 a child then moves onto the third phase, the Secondary school. The Secondary school cycle is broken into two phases namely Lower Secondary - Gymnasio
Upper Secondary - Lykeio. It is compulsory for a child to attend school till their fifteenth birthday.

At the age of fifteen the Upper secondary allow a child to decide which avenue of education they would like to pursue. There are two options, Eniaio Lykeio and Secondary Technical and Vocational Education (STVE).

Eniaio Lykeio offers pupil's three categories of subjects including compulsory subjects, specialised subjects and supplementary subjects. Pupils must select one of the three categories offered upon registration at Lykeio.

Secondary Technical and Vocational Education offers course comprised of subjects including theory, technical and practical subjects. There are 4 divisions where by the adolescent may chose which field they seek to pursue. These divisions include: Mechanical Engineering Department, Electrical Engineering Department, Civil Engineering Department and Arts and Design Department.

The Cypriot Government has also made it a policy to ensure that the children of European citizens can continue with their secondary education while they live in Cyprus by offering Intensive Greek language courses. Training is also provided to teachers to help pupils if Greek is not their first language.

After exams are written and the pupil has passed the secondary education, the next form of education is the Higher and Tertiary Education.

In the Cyprus colleges there are three semesters in a year: Fall Semester (Oct - Jan), Spring Semester (Feb - May) and Summer Semester (June - July).

The following requirements are needed before applying to a collage or institution in Cyprus: Application form for intended university or college, High school records, English language - TOEFL/ IELT, Letter of good conduct or Police report, Migration certificate, Passport copy, Financial support letter of more that US$ 10,000 per year. Cyprus is generally cheaper than other European collages or universities. The average tuition fee is about 1017.81 British Pounds per semester.

Many of the Cypriot pupils choose to study abroad. The most popular place to study is Greece. There are several reasons for this. Firstly it is close to Cyprus, costs are reasonable, there is no language barrier and the culture is similar. Other popular places to study are in England, America, Bulgaria etc.

As seen, the Cyprus education system is taken very seriously offering the best possible education system for both Cypriot children and foreigner children.