Romania to organize third Baccalaureate exam session a year to help more students graduate high school

As Romania has been facing lowering promotion rates for the end-of-high-school Baccalaureate exam in recent years, authorities have decided to introduce a third exam session a year. On top of it, the state plans to allot money to help 12th graders who fail the test prepare for the extra exam. The extra Baccalaureate session could be organized in February- March, after the one in summer, and the one in fall. This should give high school graduates an extra-chance to pass the final exam, as they would only take the exam for the subjects they failed in the first and second sessions. The Government plans to offer free private lessons for those who fail the autumn exam, and the lessons would start in October, and last until January. 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. 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