Types of institutions

Vocational non-compulsory secondary education is offered at epangelmatika lykeia (vocational upper secondary schools - EPAL), day or evening. Under law 4386/2016, epangelmatika lykeia administer two cycles of study:

• The secondary education cycle, which is part of the formal educational system
• The 'post-secondary year - apprenticeship class', that is a post-secondary education cycle, which is part of formal vocational trainign under law 4763/2020. School leaving certificate holders, secondary education cycle EPAL degree holders, as well as older types of technical vocational education schooling equivalent to EPAL graduates are eligible to enrol in 'post-secondary year - apprenticeship class'.

Details on 'post-secondary year - apprenticeship class' can be found in the relevant chapter 6.10 Organisation of post-secondary non-tertiary education. The types of institutions offering vocational secondary education are summarised, as follows:

Day vocational upper secondary schools

Attendance at imerisia epangelmatika lykeia (day vocational upper secondary schools) is of 3-year duration and includes Α, Β and C grades.  Gymnasio school leaving or equivalent certificate holders are eligible to enrol in grade A without entry examinations. Day vocational lykeia amount to 333, of which are standard schools.

Evening vocational upper secondary schools

Esperina epangelmatika lykeia (evening vocational upper secondary schools) are established by a joint decision of the Ministers of Education and Finance.  Attendance lasts for 3 years (grades A, B and C).  These schools are attended either by adult students or underage working students (law 4547/2018). Minimum age required for enrolment in evening vocational lykeia is 15 years of age.  Gymnasio school leaving or equivalent certificate holders are eligible to enrol in grade A without entry examinations.  Certificates awarded by evening vocational lykeia and day vocational lykeia are equivalent.    Evening vocational lykeia amount to 76.

Model vocational upper secondary schools 

They are established following a proposal of the Central Council of Vocational Education and Training (KSEEK) and a proposal of the relevant Council for the Association with Production and  Labor Market (SSPAE). Graduates of compulsory education are admitted to the first grade of PEPAL (Model  vocational upper secondary  schools) based on the degree of their diploma (law 4763/2020).

The purpose of the Model  vocational upper secondary  schools (PEPAL) is:

1. The implementation of the joint strategic planning for vocational education and training, with the participation of  social partners in their planning.
2. The strengthening of the autonomy of  vocational education units, with the participation of the representatives of the local community.
3. The promotion of educational research in practice, in collaboration with the respective schools and departments of Higher Education Institutes (AEI) of the country, in the teaching process of individual school subjects, as well as in the organization, administration, evaluation and relationship management at a school level.
4. The development of research as well as educational, European and international collaborations.
5. The training of teachers of vocational expertise in the subjects of their teaching. The training is assisted by higher education institutions and companies of the local area.
6. The pilot implementation of new curricula, contemporary educational material, innovative teaching practices, quality assessment programs of educational work as well as material and technical infrastructure of the school units, new models of school administration and operation, and good practices and  methods of teaching and internship.
7. The trial introduction of new professional fields and specialties prior to their being widely implemented.
8. The harmonization of professional fields and specialties with the needs of the local community, aiming at the internship and career prospects of the graduates.

The promotion of students from one class to another is governed by the provisions on the promotion and graduation of EPAL (Vocational Upper Secondary Schools) students (law 4610/2019). Also, an internship is established during studentship,  of one (1) day per week for six (6) hours, which is included in the curriculum of the laboratory courses, in the public sector as well as wider public sector bodies,  or private sector companies of the area, in accordance  to the proposals of the relevant SSPAE (Council for the Association with Production and  Labor Market) (law 4763/2020). The operation of PEPAL begins in school year 2021-2022 for the 1st grade of PEPAL, in  school year 2022-2023 for the 2nd grade of PEPAL and in school year 2023-2024 for the 3rd grade of PEPAL.

Geographical accessibility

In order to provide all students with equal learning opportunities, vocational education school units operate throughout the country.  However, each school unit does not offer all specialisations; this depends upon the preferences of students, their social-economic circumstances and the particular needs of each region. In case students have to travel long distances to arrive at their school, responsibility for their transportation lies with the regional authority where the school unit is located (by virtue of ministerial decision 50025/26-09-2018). More specifically, regional authorities offer free transportation to public upper secondary school students either via special student cards or their own means of transport for distances over 4.000 meters, or via a public service contract for distances over 5.000 meters. Students having completed secondary education are not entitled to free transport.

Admission requirements and choice of school

Gymnasio school leaving or equivalent certificate holders are eligible to enrol in grade A of EPAL without entry examinations (ministerial decision 79942/ΓΔ4/21-05-2019). Taking into consideration that schools in the country do not administer the full range of areas of study carried out by grade B and all specialisations run by grade C, each student selects a school based on his/her preferences.

Age levels and grouping of pupils/students

Day vocational upper secondary schools (EPAL) are attended by pupils beyond the age of 15 years. The pupils’ distribution to grades is mainly age-homogeneous.  However, there are exceptions.  Students completing their studies in general lykeia and wish to acquire a specialisation diploma from EPAL, or older EPAL graduates who wish to acquire a second diploma on a different specialisation, can also be older. Each class may be divided into groups, depending on the total number of students.  In accordance with ministerial decision 42712/Γ2/20-03-2014, the maximum number of students in classes of a grade, sector or specialisation of vocational upper secondary school (EPAL), is 25. With regard to vocational lykeia, in exceptional cases and upon the decision of the relevant director of secondary education, a 10% increase may apply. In the case of eveving vocational upper secondary schools, the number of students for grades C cannot exceed 22 (law 4610/2019). The teaching of different subjects - courses of general education or of specialisations, as described in curricula of the different grades in vocational upper secondary school, is delivered by teachers of the respective specialisation.  For example, the teaching of Greek language is assigned to literature teachers, mathematics to mathematicians, physics to physicists, etc.  For the proper functioning of the school unit, and if deemed necessary, the teaching of a course / courses may be assigned to teachers of another specialisation (although related to the specialisation of the course in question), such as the teaching of the course of history, which may be assigned to a foreign language teacher. Based on legislation, a teacher who is teaching a subject for a number of years does not necessarily mean that he is entitled to teach it every year. General education subjects taught in vocational lykeia grades A, B and C and specialty and flexible subjects taught in EPAL grade A of secondary education are assigned to secondary education teachers in accordance to their specialisation, as specified by ministerial decision Φ22/75401/Δ4/10-05-2018 and joint ministerial decision Φ22/134291/Δ4/08-08-2018. Flexible courses in vocational education for classes A to C for EPAL model and experimental schools are detiermined by Ministerial Decision Φ9/605550/Δ4/17-09-2021.

Organisation of the school year

The organisation of the school year of EPAL is determined at central level. The school year for day and evening upper secondary vocational schools, begins on 1 September every year and ends on 31 August of the following year. The teaching year in vocational upper secondary schools, day and evening, begins on 1 September every year and ends on 30 June of the following year. Teaching is carried out during the following periods called terms:

• Term A from 11 September to 20 January
• Term B from 21 January until the end of lessons (last week of May).

All exams for EPAL students are carried out after the end of term B in the period specified by the competent bodies of the Ministry of Education and end on 30 June.  There are two exam periods: one during the first fortnight of June and one in September. During the summer holidays, each EPAL is open for one day per week for administrative reasons. The teaching year encompasses Christmas and Easter holidays of a total duration of 4 weeks.  Summer holidays for students last from 1 July to 10 September. The days of school operation amount to 189 per year approximately and are organised in weeks of 5 days (Monday to Friday).  Teaching time amounts to 35 hours per week for day EPAL and 30 for evening EPAL. Timetables are defined based on detailed curricula by ministerial decisions and are applied to all vocational upper secondary schools (EPAL) of the territory.  Details regarding timetables of vocational upper secondary schools (EPAL) are available in the section 6.11 Teaching and learning in vocational upper secondary education.

Organisation of the school day and week

Teaching time per grade is centrally defined and applied for the same type of upper secondary vocational school (EPAL) throughout the country. Classes in day EPAL begin at 08:15 and end at 14:10 while in evening EPAL, classes begin at 17:00 or 17:30 or 18:00 or 18:30 and end between 20:50 and 23:00, depending on the alternative scenaria as regards operating times, as described below. The distribution of lessons per week is not centrally defined and falls under the responsibility of schools.  Day vocational upper secondary school timetable

TABLE (1) Evening vocational upper secondary school timetable Classes begin: 17:00 Classes end: 21:30 (3-year attendance)                     

TABLE (2) Evening vocational upper secondary school timetable Classes begin: 17:30 Classes end: 22:00 (3-year attendance)                    

TABLE (3) Evening vocational upper secondary school timetable Classes begin: 18:00 Classes end:    22:30 (3-year attendance)            

TABLE (4) Evening vocational upper secondary school timetable Classes begin: 18:30 Classes end: 23:00 (3-year attendance)            

Each school unit, apart from regular classrooms, includes support rooms, a fitness centre, a conference hall, a library and a science laboratory.  Each grade has its own classroom throughout the school year while other rooms are used alternately by various groups of pupils in accordance with the needs of the weekly programme or special events.