Schools and Gymnasium entry in Sachsen-Anhalt

Primary school in Sachsen-Anhalt lasts four years, and children usually move on in Grade 5. Gymnasium is the academic pathway that leads to the Abitur, and the state also offers other secondary school types with different leaving qualifications.

Parents choose entry to Grade 5 at Gymnasium, taking their child's abilities and interests into account, and the primary school provides guidance.

The system also includes an Eignungsfeststellungsverfahren: written and oral assessments in German and maths that inform the decision. If your preference differs from the primary school's provisional recommendation, your child takes part in that assessment. Families whose preference matches the provisional recommendation may use the procedure too. The final recommendation is not binding, because parents make the school-type decision.

One detail worth knowing: these steps run on a fixed timetable through the autumn, so ask your primary school which steps apply to your child and what happens if a date was missed.

This page describes the ordinary move from primary school. Later transfers into Gymnasium, and specialist schools with their own profiles, can have different requirements.