A quarter of Romania’s high school graduates did not sign up for this year’s Baccalaureate. In total, 44,000 12th graders chose to skip the final high school exam this year, which was double compared to last year, according to Digi24.

The highest ratio of absents was found in the country of Braila, with a rate of 40 percent, then in Ilfov, near Bucharest, with 37 percent. In Iasi, 35 percent of 12th school graders will not take the exam. In Bucharest, only 12,000 out of the 17,000 high school graduates signed up for the exam.

Last year, the Baccalaureate promotion rate was of 56.4 percent, up from 44.4 percent in 2012, which was also the lowest in the last four years. Many high school graduates choose to go abroad to their families, who have already lined up jobs for them, or move on to post-high school schools which teach them a trade and which do not require the Baccalaureate diploma.

The Baccalaureate exam is ongoing in Romania, having started on June 10, and due to end on July 4. The results will be announced on July 11.

editor@romania-insider.com