NZ Education System

Students in New Zealand are supported to solve problems, process information, work with others, create and innovate. Whichever level you’re studying at, New Zealand can give you a high-quality education that will enable you to achieve your goals.

National Certificate of Educational Achievement - NCEA

LEVEL 1: (Year 11)

Students study six subjects in addition to Physical Education and Health.
80 credits are needed and these must include 10 specified literacy and 10 specifed numeracy credits.

LEVEL 2: (Year 12)

80 credits are required, 60 of which must be at Level 2 or higher.
Credits in some subjects may also count towards other National Certificates,
eg: National Certificate of Employment Skills, National Certificate in Business Administration and Computing.

LEVEL 3: (Year 13)

80 credits are required, 60 of which must be at Level 3 and 20 at Level 2 or higher.
Students may also be gaining or working towards a variety of other certificates.

International Baccalaureate - IB

Developed in Geneva, the IB is designed to provide an internationally accepted qualification for entry to higher education. There are 21 World Schools in New Zealand offering one or more of the three IB programmes

The Cambridge Examinations - CIE

Approximately 60 New Zealand secondary schools offer this qualification. It can be attained at three levels in either year 11, 12 or 13 and uses a range of assessment methods with the emphasis on external exams. Coursework and internal assessment are also part of many subjects.