Education in the Czech Republic

Education in the Czech Republic is well respected in Europe. Students from almost fifty nations including Austria, the UK, Germany, Russia and the USA attend university here. Czech universities do not charge tuition fees and their degrees are recognised worldwide.

Preschool, primary and secondary education

Preschool

Czech nurseries (mateřská škola) are of high quality and free but waiting lists can often be long due to high demand. Non-Czech parents will need to submit their visa or residence permit as well as the child's medical and vaccination records. Nurseries accept children from the age of three.

Primary and secondary education

Children attend basic school (základní škola) from six to fourteen. Upon completing nine years there they go to high school (střední škola) for one or two years, secondary vocational school (střední odborné učiliště or SOU) for two or three years, general secondary school (gymnázium) or secondary technical school (střední odborná škola, SOŠ) for four years.

Universities

The Czech Republic has twenty-six public and fifty private universities offering a wide range of academic programmes and majors. Universities offer the standard EU academic cycles (ECTS): Bachelor’s (six semesters), Master’s (four semesters) and Doctorate (six semesters). Czech degrees are recognised across Europe, entitling the holder to work at that level anywhere in the EU.

Applicants must provide their secondary school certificate or university degree from any previous studies and can apply to more than one university simultaneously. Students who are not proficient in the Czech language must attend language courses that cost €2,000–5,000 per year. Knowledge of English and German is also often required. Liberal Arts Universities have tough entrance exams.

Studies in Czech are free of charge while courses in English are fee-paying. One of the most expensive universities is the University of New York in Prague. There tuition is about €6,500 (CZK 180,000) per year.

One of the top universities is the Czech Technical University in Prague (České Vysoké Učení Technické v Praze), the oldest of its kind in Central Europe. It was founded in 1707 by Joseph I, Emperor of Austria, and has many famous graduates including Austrian physicist Christian Doppler and Nobel Prize winning Swiss chemist, Vladimir Prelog.

Living costs for students are lower than in Western Europe. For instance, in Prague it costs approximately €400–700 for accommodation, food, entertainment and transport. Fees for accommodation on campus are €50–100 per month and lunch in a university cafeteria is just €1–3. Student visas allow foreign citizens to work for maximum 30 days per calendar year.