Education in Cyprus

Cyprus has a highly developed system of primary and secondary education offering both public and private education. The high quality of instruction can be attributed to a large extent to the above-average competence of the teachers[citation needed] but also to the fact that nearly 7% of the GDP is spent on education which makes Cyprus one of the top three spenders of education in the EU along with Denmark and Sweden.

State schools are generally seen as equivalent in quality of education to private-sector institutions. However, the value of a state high-school diploma is limited by the fact that the grades obtained account for only around 25% of the final grade for each topic, with the remaining 75% assigned by the teacher during the semester, in a minimally transparent way. Cypriot universities (like universities in Greece) ignore high school grades almost entirely for admissions purposes. While a high-school diploma is mandatory for university attendance, admissions are decided almost exclusively on the basis of scores at centrally administered university entrance examinations that all university candidates are required to take.

The majority of Cypriots receive their higher education at Greek, British, Turkish, other European and North American universities. It is noteworthy that Cyprus currently has the highest percentage of citizens of working age who have higher-level education in the EU at 30% which is ahead of Finland's 29.5%. In addition 47% of its population aged 25–34 have tertiary education, which is the highest in the EU. The body of Cypriot students is highly mobile, with 78.7% studying in a university outside Cyprus.

Education in North Cyprus:

Main article: Education in Northern Cyprus

The education system in Northern Cyprus consists of pre-school education, primary education, secondary education and higher education. Five years of primary education is mandatory.

There are more than 40,000 university students in six universities in Northern Cyprus: Near East University, Girne American University, Middle East Technical University, European University of Lefke, Cyprus International University, Eastern Mediterranean University (EMU), all, except METU, established since 1974. EMU is an internationally recognised institution of higher learning with more than 1000 faculty members from 35 countries. There are 15,000 students in EMU representing 68 nationalities. The 6 universities have been approved by the Higher Education Council of Turkey. Eastern Mediterranean University and Near East University are full individual members of the European University Association.[44] EMU is full member of Community of Mediterranean Universities, Federation Universities of Islamic World, International Association of Universities and International Council of Graphic Design Associations.[45] Three universities (Istanbul Technical University, Cukurova University, Gazi University) will open campuses in Northern Cyprus in 2010. Girne American University, in the northern coastal city of Girne, opened a campus in Canterbury, United Kingdom in 2009, and accredited by the British Accreditation Council in 2010.

Universities in Cyprus: