Education in Estonia: School Stages, Compulsory Learning, Exams and Degree Routes

Estonia’s education system is changing at several transition points. This guide explains the nine-year basic stage, the new obligation to continue learning, current language and examination arrangements, vocational qualifications and routes into higher education.

Reviewed: 17 October 2026. The guide distinguishes rules already operating in 2026/27 from the approved 2027 admissions calendar, older cohorts and proposed reforms. It complements the separate eduKateSG stage guides with a whole-system account.

Estonia education system at a glance

Question	Quick answer
Basic school	Grades 1–9, divided into stages 1–3, 4–6 and 7–9; normal entry at seven.
Compulsory-learning rule	For covered cohorts: from age seven before 1 October until eighteen, or earlier secondary/vocational completion; transitional exemptions apply.
After Grade 9	Three-year general upper-secondary school or vocational routes; new vocational-secondary curricula normally last four years.
Current language transition	Grades 1–6 covered in 2026/27 under the phased Estonian-language transition; other cohorts and institution types need separate checks.
School examinations	Basic-school finals at Grade 9; state and school completion requirements at general upper-secondary level.
Higher education	First-cycle bachelor’s/professional higher education, master’s or integrated programmes, then research doctorates; admission is programme-specific.

1. The school ladder: nine basic years, then different routes

Estonia’s basic school, põhikool, comprises Grades 1–9. It is divided into three stages: Grades 1–3, 4–6 and 7–9. A child starting at seven usually reaches the end of Grade 9 at about sixteen. Descriptions that call only Grades 1–6 “primary” are useful stage labels, but those six years do not complete Estonian basic education.

After basic school, general upper-secondary education in a gümnaasium normally lasts three years, Grades 10–12. Vocational-secondary education combines occupational preparation with a secondary qualification; its new model lasts four years. Other vocational programmes have different entry levels and do not all award secondary education. The Ministry’s school framework explains the general stages.

The key decisions are therefore completion of basic education, choice of the next programme and completion of the qualification that programme actually awards. A building called a school or college may offer several levels. Its name alone cannot tell a family whether a course leads to basic completion, secondary education, a vocational certificate or a higher-education degree.

2. Who must continue learning in 2026?

The current obligation begins for a resident child who turns seven before 1 October of the year concerned. Under the reform applied from 2025/26, it continues until eighteen, unless the young person completes secondary or vocational education earlier. Participation may be in basic, secondary or vocational education; the rule is not a requirement that everyone attend an academic gymnasium.

The current Ministry guidance expressly preserves transitional exemptions. A young person who completed basic school before 1 September 2025, or turned seventeen before that date, is outside the new obligation. By contrast, a pupil who completed Grade 9 in spring 2026 and is still under eighteen must continue learning. Simply repeating the old description “compulsory to seventeen or Grade 9” misses this cohort change.

The obligation also covers resident foreign-citizen and stateless children, with the stated exception for children of accredited foreign or international-organisation representatives. Families should establish the learner’s actual completion date and age, rather than infer the rule from nationality.

The reform explanation places responsibilities on schools and municipalities to identify learners at risk of dropping out and support continuation. For a sixteen-year-old without a confirmed next place, the immediate issue is an organised learning route, including preparatory education where appropriate, rather than an unplanned year away from education.

3. Childcare and kindergarten under the new framework

Municipal provision distinguishes childcare for ages 1½–3 from kindergarten for ages 3–7, provided through the local-government application route. Participation before school is based on the family’s request; it is not a compulsory extra school grade. The Education and Youth Board’s current family guidance identifies these age groups.

The Early Childhood Education Act and new curriculum took effect on 1 September 2025. The Ministry’s implementation page brings the operative rules together. Childcare has been integrated into the education framework, so old descriptions treating every childcare provider solely as a social-care service can be misleading.

The 2025 national curriculum required local curricula to be aligned by 31 August 2026. That deadline has already passed at this guide’s review date. Its assessment approach includes a written developmental summary at least annually and a school-readiness card for the child entering school. These records describe development and support needs; they are not national examination scores.

For an illustrative six-year-old moving municipality, the useful transfer is the child’s developmental record, language background and agreed support. Ask the receiving kindergarten how these will inform the transition into Grade 1. A place offer, attendance charge and meal charge are separate practical questions, so obtain the municipality’s actual terms rather than assuming that preschool provision is universally free.

4. Entering basic school or transferring from abroad

The municipality assigns a residential school, considering proximity, siblings already attending and, where possible, parental wishes. The assigned school must admit the child without an entrance test. Parents can seek another school if it has vacancies; certain nationally recruiting specialist schools and private schools have additional admission arrangements. These distinctions appear in the basic-education guidance.

For a child arriving from a foreign school or another curriculum, the school’s teaching council decides the appropriate class, considering age and previous education. A foreign “Year 6” label should therefore not be converted mechanically into Estonian Grade 6. Supply the years completed, subjects studied, reports and teaching languages.

An early start is possible where readiness has been assessed and recommended. A health-related one-year postponement uses the external counselling process. Neither is simply a parent-selected change to the national age rule.

Consider a ten-year-old who has strong mathematics but little Estonian. The placement conversation should separate mathematical attainment, reading development in the previous language and the new language-learning task. A translated report helps, but examples of completed work can make the starting point clearer. This is an illustrative preparation strategy, not an assurance of a particular grade placement or a substitute for the school’s decision.

5. Curriculum, grades and the meaning of progress

The national basic-school curriculum establishes common learning outcomes while schools organise their own curriculum and teaching. The three basic stages form a continuous programme, rather than three separate certificates. Subjects broaden across the years, and the final stage includes a creative assignment as part of the ordinary completion route.

The usual numerical scale runs from 5, very good, to 1, weak, with 3 meaning satisfactory and 2 insufficient. Schools may use other approved reporting systems, including descriptive assessment without a numerical equivalent in Grades 1–6. Read the school’s explanation before treating a narrative report as a missing mark or converting a five-point result into a percentage.

A useful report discussion connects a result with the underlying skill. For example, “satisfactory mathematics” does not reveal whether the difficulty concerns fractions, interpreting a problem or explaining a method in Estonian. Ask for one completed task and the next learning objective. The same principle applies when a school uses descriptive feedback: progress should be visible in what the learner can do, not only in whether a number appears on the report.

6. The Estonian-language transition is cohort-specific

The transition began in kindergartens and Grades 1 and 4 in September 2024. Under the scheduled progression, Grades 1–6 are covered in 2026/27. Older basic-school cohorts move through the timetable separately. A school may have adopted Estonian earlier, so the national minimum timetable and the school’s actual practice should both be checked.

The Ministry’s transition guidance also distinguishes institution types and exceptions. It should not be paraphrased as a ban on every private or international programme taught in another language. In vocational-secondary education, the transitional requirement is at least 60% Estonian through 2029/30, with fully Estonian provision for the relevant new entrants from 2030/31.

For a family, the practical question is how subject learning and language development are supported together. A pupil might understand a science concept but lack the Estonian vocabulary to explain it. Ask which subjects are taught in Estonian, what additional language support is scheduled, how teachers identify subject knowledge and how progress is reported.

An English-taught university programme later in the education system is a different arrangement. Its existence does not imply that a nearby basic school offers an English-medium stream, and learning English as a school subject is not the same as receiving all instruction through English.

7. Grade 9 completion: examinations still matter

The ordinary basic-school route includes examinations in Estonian or Estonian as a second language, mathematics and one chosen subject, alongside the required school results and creative assignment. The national examination explanation distinguishes these final examinations from classroom assessment.

Changes effective on 26 December 2025 removed the automatic immediate school-level resit obligation after an unsuccessful unified examination. They did not remove the 50% examination threshold from the ordinary completion framework or make every Grade 9 pupil graduate automatically. The current graduation guidance explains that participation and the graduation decision are separate.

Its detailed decision table is important. With positive annual grades but up to two negative examination results, completion is possible by teaching-council decision. With three negative examination results and positive annual grades, parental consent is also required. Combinations involving negative annual grades have additional conditions and can lead to extra study or repetition. A missed examination requires the prescribed additional sitting; non-participation is not simply treated as a low pass.

For a pupil with one weak exam, ask the school to identify the applicable decision-table row and document the outcome. Then check the next school’s admission criteria separately. Permission to complete basic education does not compel a selective gymnasium to accept that result.

8. The published 2026/27 examination arrangements

The Education and Youth Board, Haridus- ja Noorteamet, or Harno, publishes the actual examination timetable. For the 2026/27 school year, its basic-school schedule lists Estonian on 28 April 2027, mathematics on 11 May and the main choice-examination date on 4 May. Estonian as a second language has its written component on 20 April, with oral components over 20–23 April.

The current schedule lists Estonian-as-a-second-language and English choice examinations electronically, while Estonian and mathematics remain paper examinations. Older announcements of a wider 2027 electronic rollout should not override this published schedule. The Ministry’s current implementation timeline places electronic Estonian and mathematics examinations in 2028.

From 2026, Harno no longer prepares national basic-school German and French papers. Approved international B1 examinations can serve the relevant purpose under the published arrangements. This is a specific change in the examination route, not removal of those languages from education.

Use the current sitting’s instructions for registration, oral dates, approved alternatives and additional sittings. A timetable copied from an older child’s examination year can be wrong even when the subjects have the same names.

9. The approved 2027 transition into gymnasium or vocational school

For 2027/28 entry, the Ministry has approved a coordinated process through SAIS, the admissions information system. This is a forward-looking arrangement already adopted in September 2026, not a claim that all 2026 admissions used the same process. The approval announcement is the relevant policy source.

Applications run from 29 March to 18 May 2027. Applicants rank their preferences; a school may award additional ranking points for preference position. Basic-school examination results are due by 17 May, leaving time to review applications by 18 May. Selection activities run from 19 May to 10 June, offers begin on 11 June and the main offer period continues through 2 July. The current transition page supplies the calendar.

A shared application system does not create one national admission score. Schools retain published criteria, which can include results and selection activities. Check each programme’s requirements before ranking it. The preferred order can matter, so it should reflect a considered choice rather than an arbitrary list.

The published continuation round runs from July into August, with preparatory-course admission beginning on 24 August 2027. These are the 2027 dates. Preparatory education’s first 2026 intake had different arrangements.

10. General upper-secondary study and its completion requirements

General upper-secondary school normally covers Grades 10–12, approximately ages sixteen to nineteen on an uninterrupted pathway. The standard full-time curriculum comprises at least 96 courses; a course represents 35 lessons of 45 minutes. Schools combine national requirements with their own directions and electives, according to the Ministry’s general-secondary framework.

For graduation, school results, state examinations, a school examination and a research or practical assignment have distinct roles. The three state-examination areas are Estonian or Estonian as a second language, mathematics and a foreign language under the recognised options. Mathematics has narrow and broad versions. The state-examination guidance explains the components and exemptions.

A particularly important distinction concerns language results. The minimum positive Estonian state-examination result for school completion is one point, whereas an Estonian-as-a-second-language result of at least 60% earns the linked B2 language certificate. Those are different outcomes. Neither threshold guarantees university admission.

When choosing a gymnasium direction, work backwards from a plausible next step. A learner considering a mathematics-intensive degree should compare the mathematics taught, the examination version and the university’s requirements. A broad course list is less useful than knowing whether the necessary preparation is actually available. A research project also develops a different kind of evidence: defining a question, using sources or data and explaining conclusions, rather than only answering timed examination questions.

11. The new four-year vocational-secondary route

Estonia’s reform positions kutsekeskharidus, also described as applied secondary education, as a route combining general and occupational learning. New-model pilots began in 2025/26, with wider transition to the new curricula in 2026/27. The model is four years and 240 EKAP, according to the reform framework. This does not retrospectively add a year to every older cohort’s programme.

EKAP means Estonian vocational-education credit. One credit represents 26 hours of learner workload, and a normal year is 60 credits. The new model allocates 125 credits to core/professional study, including at least 25 of placement, 80 to general education and 35 to electives, including five freely chosen credits. Workload includes more than classroom attendance.

There is a concrete 2026 example at Räpina School of Horticulture. Its four-year “Horticulture and Nature Conservation” programme requires basic education. The first year supports direction choice; subsequent study develops areas such as horticultural production and marketing, nature conservation, outdoor-space construction or interior planting and floristry.

That example shows why the programme should be read as a full secondary pathway, not a short gardening course. A prospective learner can compare the general subjects, chosen direction, placement arrangements and actual leaving award. The school describes progression into work or further study; admission to a later degree still depends on that institution’s requirements.

12. Other vocational levels, apprenticeships and qualification documents

Vocational programmes span Estonian qualification levels 2–5. Level 4 vocational-secondary programmes award secondary education alongside occupational learning. Level 5 vocational study requires prior secondary education; it is not a bachelor’s degree. Other vocational programmes must be read with their own entry and award descriptions. The Ministry’s current programme framework makes these distinctions.

Workplace-based apprenticeship is a study form, not a separate automatic qualification level. At least two thirds of its curriculum takes place as workplace practice. Under the published study arrangements, graduation requires the prescribed learning outcomes and applicable final or occupational assessment. The school completion certificate and transcript are distinct from an occupational certificate issued through the qualification-awarding process.

The Ministry discussed changing the role of occupational examinations in September 2026, but described a gradual reform and continuing arrangements during transition. Families should not infer that all occupational examinations have already been abolished. Read the current curriculum and graduation rules for the actual cohort.

Progression depends on general education as well as occupational level. The progression guidance confirms that vocational-secondary graduates may apply to bachelor’s or professional higher-education programmes. Someone with a practical certificate that did not include secondary education has a different starting point. For a university aim, establish the secondary award and any required state-examination preparation before enrolling.

13. Preparatory education: a real route from 2026/27

Preparatory education, ettevalmistav õpe, began in 2026/27 for learners who need readiness for the next stage. Its main group is basic-school graduates still within the learning obligation who have not secured a suitable next place. It can also serve learners with insufficient Estonian and young people up to twenty-six who are outside education, employment and other active participation.

The current Ministry page describes a usual duration of one school year, potentially shorter if the learner moves into an appropriate programme earlier. Although legally organised as level 2 vocational study, its purpose is preparation. It should not be advertised as a substitute secondary-school diploma.

For 2026, applications opened from 1 July and continue throughout the year, using the named school’s application channel. That differs from the already published 2027 admission calendar. The Ministry also identifies free school lunch, conditional dormitory and travel support, while excluding the ordinary study allowance and student loan under the relevant law.

An illustrative learner who missed a preferred gymnasium place may need language development, subject consolidation and help selecting a vocational direction. A useful preparatory plan names those objectives and a next admission point. Simply spending another year enrolled is less informative than knowing which barriers the programme is intended to resolve.

14. Higher education: first degrees, master’s and integrated programmes

Estonia has university and professional higher-education routes. A standard bachelor’s programme is generally three years and 180 ECTS, with some four-year, 240-credit programmes. Professional higher education usually takes three or four years and is also a first-cycle route; particular regulated programmes can be longer. Read the exact degree and programme rather than interpreting “professional” as non-degree training.

ECTS is the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System. A full-time year normally represents 60 credits. Credits describe workload and learning outcomes, not a promise that another institution must accept every course for transfer.

The national qualification explanation places master’s study after a first-cycle qualification, commonly one or two years and 60–120 credits, with the combined first and second cycles normally reaching at least five years. Integrated programmes combine these stages, typically over five or six years, rather than issuing an ordinary three-year bachelor’s midway as the universal endpoint.

A further cohort distinction concerns pharmacy. The enacted June 2026 amendment provides for separate first- and second-cycle pharmacy study from 1 January 2027, while protecting students already enrolled on the integrated route. The statutory change does not itself identify which institution is recruiting to each new programme.

These distinctions matter when comparing offers. A three-year bachelor’s followed by a relevant two-year master’s is one route; an integrated professional programme has a different curriculum and award structure. Neither a level 5 vocational course nor a short university continuing-education course should be relabelled as a bachelor’s merely because it is delivered by a respected institution.

15. University admission: a concrete TalTech example

Secondary completion provides the educational starting point for first-cycle admission, but universities set programme-specific conditions. An application can involve qualification recognition, language evidence, examination results, a test, portfolio, motivation statement or interview. The Ministry’s higher-education overview should be read alongside the receiving institution’s current instructions.

For a concrete example, Tallinn University of Technology, known as TalTech, publishes an English-taught Cyber Security Engineering BSc lasting three years and 180 ECTS. Its programme page sets out document screening, a supervised online test, and motivation/interview assessment. It specifies at least 60 points to pass the test and proceed to interview, then at least 60 in the motivation/interview assessment for admission consideration under its rules.

The same page specifies the required secondary qualification, academic-result threshold and English evidence. These are that programme’s requirements, not Estonia-wide pass marks. A strong school-leaving result alone does not replace a required test, and passing the test does not excuse missing qualification documentation.

An illustrative applicant should build a short evidence list: the award establishing secondary completion, its transcript, the accepted language proof and the programme’s selection tasks. Check which application channel applies to the applicant’s qualification and status. Do not assume that a national school application account automatically completes an international university application.

16. Research study and doctoral entry

A master’s degree is the normal academic gateway to doctoral study, but a research application requires more than naming that degree. The subject fit, proposed work, supervision and selection process all matter. A professional degree title containing “doctor” should likewise be checked against its actual level rather than assumed to be a research doctorate.

The University of Tartu’s Social Sciences programme provides a current example. Its 2026/27 curriculum lists four years and 240 ECTS in the full-time model, with a longer session-based option. Entry requires a master’s degree or equivalent that corresponds to the Estonian master’s level and the required English proficiency. Selection and available research opportunities differ among specialisations such as economics, psychology and political science.

Tartu’s doctoral open calls identify the actual intake and position. Many doctoral researchers are recruited into junior research-fellow employment, but funding, duties and status should be read in the individual call. Do not treat a historical national stipend figure or a university-wide announcement as a guaranteed payment for every applicant.

For an illustrative master’s graduate, the useful first step is to match a research question with a current call and potential supervision, then prepare the requested proposal or motivation evidence. A topic being taught at undergraduate level does not by itself establish an available doctoral place.

17. What is free, and when can study become fee-paying?

Public general schooling and publicly supported study routes should be distinguished from every household expense or every private programme. Preschool attendance and meal charges, travel, housing and optional activities require their own local checks. A publicly funded place is not automatically a complete living-cost package.

Vocational funding rules changed for entrants from September 2025. The current fee guidance protects learners fulfilling the learning obligation and identifies other exemptions. A learner who turns eighteen while continuing that protected programme does not suddenly start paying solely because of the birthday. Repeat qualifications, previous funded higher education, simultaneous study and certain other circumstances can affect adult eligibility. Some age-limited exceptions run to 2030, so “all vocational study is always free” is too broad.

For higher education, full-time Estonian-language study is generally tuition-free subject to the applicable progress and prior-study rules. The Ministry’s funding explanation distinguishes first entry, repeated study at the same cycle, interruption and older cohorts. Restrictions on another funded degree are not the same as a prohibition on admission, and progression from bachelor’s to master’s is different from taking a second bachelor’s.

The amendments effective from 19 July 2026 also allow fees for full-time Estonian-language master’s programmes below 120 credits and for certain doctoral students who are not EU, EEA or Swiss citizens, subject to the law’s protected residence categories. This is permission to charge under specified conditions, not a universal fee imposed on every such programme or student.

Foreign-language programmes may charge tuition under their own rules. Before accepting, obtain the programme’s fee assessment and conditions for retaining any waiver. Record accommodation and living costs separately, and ask what happens financially if study is interrupted or the expected credit load is not completed.

18. Checking programme status and foreign qualifications

For Estonian higher education, verify the right to organise studies in the relevant programme group and degree level. The Estonian Quality Agency for Education, HAKA, explains that approval at bachelor’s level does not automatically establish approval at master’s level in the same field. Programmes are registered in the Estonian Education Information System, EHIS. Use HAKA’s approval explanation and student-check resources rather than a historic list of institutions.

For a foreign qualification, the Estonian ENIC/NARIC academic-recognition centre within Harno provides qualification assessment. Its published service is free and normally provides an evaluation within thirty days after complete documentation. Submit the actual award and supplements, including relevant earlier qualifications where required. The assessment helps establish comparison; it is not an admission offer.

Academic recognition also differs from permission to work in a regulated profession. Harno’s professional-recognition guidance identifies the separate competent-authority process. A recognised degree in a health profession, for example, does not by itself settle every registration or language requirement for professional practice.

Keep the award title, transcript, dates and study mode consistent across applications. If a document is missing, ask the receiving authority about its procedure rather than replacing the missing fact with an assumed equivalence.

19. Learning support, adult return and continuity

Support starts with the school’s teachers and specialists, but Estonia also has the Rajaleidja counselling network. Harno describes free educational counselling involving psychologists, speech therapists, special educators and social pedagogues. Its service description explains the national role.

The March 2026 account of Rajaleidja’s work identifies the external counselling team’s formal role in recommendations such as postponing school entry or adapting the learning programme. Families and schools can seek further help when first-line support has not resolved the difficulty. A recommendation, an available specialist appointment and daily support in class are related but different parts of delivery.

When transferring, ask which adaptations have actually been used and whether examination arrangements need a separate decision. A translated diagnosis alone does not explain the pupil’s instructional needs. Examples of successful support, communication methods and current learning goals can make the handover more useful.

Returning adults also have routes through non-stationary general education and vocational study. The vocational progression guidance explains how prior basic or secondary education changes the next options, including general-education preparation after vocational-secondary completion. For someone who left gymnasium early, identify which completed courses can be recognised and what remains for the award. An evening timetable or online component changes study organisation, not automatically the level of qualification.

20. Three practical decisions through the Estonian system

A spring 2026 Grade 9 graduate aged sixteen. The learner is within the new continuing-learning cohort. If annual grades are satisfactory but one examination is below the ordinary threshold, first establish the school’s graduation decision. Next, compare actual admission criteria and available places. A preparatory route may address a missing next place or readiness gap; a low result does not by itself explain which programme is appropriate.

A practically minded learner who may later want a degree. Compare the new four-year vocational-secondary curriculum with a three-year gymnasium programme. Check the secondary award, mathematics and language preparation, workplace learning and potential university requirements. Do not substitute a shorter occupational-only course without noticing that the general-education outcome may differ. The extra vocational year contains substantial general and professional study, not simply a delayed version of gymnasium.

An overseas graduate considering a second qualification. Separate three decisions: whether the previous award is academically comparable, whether the chosen programme admits the applicant, and whether the place is tuition-free. A positive answer to one does not determine the other two. If the aim is professional practice, add the regulator’s recognition requirements.

These are fictional examples, not individual case reports. They show why the same words, such as “finished school,” “college” or “free study,” need a precise qualification, cohort and programme attached to them.

21. Frequently asked questions

Is basic school the same as compulsory education?

Basic school is the nine-grade stage. For the new cohorts, the obligation continues beyond Grade 9 until eighteen or earlier completion of secondary or vocational education. Transitional exemptions matter.

Does every child start school at exactly seven?

The ordinary rule uses the seventh birthday before 1 October. Assessed early entry and a formally supported postponement are possible; the receiving school and counselling process determine the applicable route.

Have Grade 9 examinations been abolished?

No. The immediate resit arrangement changed, while examinations and graduation conditions remain. Some negative results can be handled through specified school decisions; this is not automatic graduation or guaranteed admission elsewhere.

Are all basic-school examinations electronic in 2027?

No. The current schedule retains paper Estonian and mathematics, alongside electronic Estonian-as-a-second-language and English choice examinations. Use the latest subject instructions.

Does SAIS choose the same admission standard for every school?

No. It provides a coordinated application process. School criteria and preference rules still matter, and an applicant must respond to the actual offer and enrolment instructions.

Is a vocational programme a dead end for university?

Vocational-secondary completion can provide access to higher-education applications. Check the award, required subjects and examinations. A vocational certificate without secondary education is a different qualification.

Does preparatory education award secondary education?

Its purpose is readiness for the next stage. It should not be represented as a secondary diploma or a guaranteed place on a preferred programme.

Can I rely on an older free-study description?

Funding now depends more closely on study history, programme and entry cohort. Request a current assessment, particularly for repeated or simultaneous vocational and higher study.

Official sources and scope

Primary Ministry, Education and Youth Board, legal-register, quality-agency and institutional sources underpin the guide. Current Estonian-language implementation pages take precedence where older English summaries retain superseded rules. Programme examples are bounded to the named institution and published curriculum. Dates refer to the specified intake or examination year. Practical examples are original illustrations.

• Ministry of Education and Research: general education — Nine-grade basic-school structure and the standard general upper-secondary curriculum.
• Ministry: current obligation-to-learn guidance — October 2026 guidance: entry cutoff, age 18, transitional exemptions, foreign residents and implementation timetable.
• Ministry: obligation-to-learn reform in English — Explains the 2025/26 cohort reform and responsibilities for keeping young people in education.
• Education and Youth Board: how Estonian kindergartens and schools work — Current childcare and kindergarten age groups and local-government access route.
• Ministry: early-childhood education — Operative early-childhood legislation, curriculum and implementation guidance.
• National early-childhood curriculum, 2025 — Sections 23–25: developmental assessment, school-readiness record, alignment by 31 August 2026 and commencement on 1 September 2025.
• Ministry: basic education — Residential-school placement, foreign transfers, grading and the detailed basic-school graduation decision table.
• National basic-school curriculum, current text — Stage structure and curriculum framework; consult the current version rather than an old consolidated edition.
• Ministry: transition to Estonian-language education — Cohort-by-cohort basic-school transition, institutional scope and vocational-secondary language timetable.
• Ministry: unified basic-school final examinations — Three-examination structure and the distinction between final examinations and other assessments.
• Ministry: basic-school graduation and 2027 admissions — Graduation changes effective 26 December 2025 and the approved 2027 transition calendar.
• Education and Youth Board: basic-school examinations — 2026/27 dates and formats; German and French examination changes from 2026.
• Ministry: approved 2027 upper-secondary and vocational admissions timetable — 15 September 2026 announcement of adopted regulations; common system, preferences and school-specific selection.
• Ministry: upper-secondary state examinations — Estonian, mathematics, foreign-language options, school examination and research/practical assignment.
• Ministry: vocational-education reform — Four-year, 240-credit model and 2025/26 pilot to 2026/27 wider rollout; targets are not outcomes.
• Ministry: vocational types and curricula — Updated September 2026; qualification levels, secondary award and new national curricula.
• Ministry: studying in vocational education — Workload credits, apprenticeship form, assessment and graduation documents.
• Räpina School of Horticulture: horticulture and nature conservation — Concrete four-year programme introduced for 2026 basic-school graduates, with a first-year orientation and later study directions.
• Ministry: progression after vocational education — Different progression rights according to award and prior general education; vocational-secondary access to higher education.
• Ministry: vocational examination reform discussion, September 2026 — Proposal for gradual vocational-examination reform and continuing arrangements during transition.
• Ministry: preparatory education — Current 2026/27 preparatory route, usual duration, target learners, application channels and support exclusions.
• Education and Youth Board: Estonian qualifications framework — Degree levels, typical programme lengths and the credit framework.
• Ministry: higher education — Higher-education institutions, degree organisation and study routes.
• Tallinn University of Technology: Cyber Security Engineering — Current three-year, 180-ECTS English-taught BSc and its document, test, motivation and interview requirements.
• University of Tartu: Social Sciences doctoral programme — 2026/27 curriculum, four-year full-time model, master’s entry qualification and specialisation-specific selection.
• University of Tartu: doctoral open calls — Intake-specific research positions and employment arrangements; availability differs by specialisation.
• Ministry: free and fee-paying vocational study — Updated 14 October 2026; post-September-2025 rules, compulsory learners and repeat-study exceptions.
• Ministry: free higher education and cost reimbursement — Cohort-sensitive rules from 2024/25 and restrictions on repeated or simultaneous funded study.
• Riigikogu: enacted Higher Education Act amendment, 17 June 2026 — Fee provisions and pharmacy restructuring; section 5 reserves specified provisions for 1 January 2027.
• Higher Education Act: consolidated version effective 19 July 2026 — Current legislative framework, including the July 2026 amendments; specified pharmacy changes follow in January 2027.
• Estonian Quality Agency for Education: right to organise studies — Approval is tied to programme group and degree level; programmes are registered in EHIS.
• Estonian Quality Agency for Education: student checks — Links to programme/right-to-study records and external quality-assessment decisions.
• Education and Youth Board: academic recognition — Estonian ENIC/NARIC foreign-qualification assessment, required documentation and distinction from automatic admission.
• Education and Youth Board: professional recognition — Regulated-profession recognition and competent authorities are separate from academic comparison.
• Education and Youth Board: Rajaleidja’s role, March 2026 — School-level support, specialist counselling and formal external-team educational recommendations.
• Education and Youth Board: services and organisation — Confirms free Rajaleidja educational counselling and its specialist network.

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