Moving to Spain: Finding a School

Public

Those schools which are publicly owned and which are accountable to the different Autonomous Communities and are free of charge.

State-Subsidised Private

Private schools that satisfy a series of requirements and are subsidised by the State, so that the fees to be paid are not very high.

Private

Privately owned establishments whose cost depends on many factors such as the enrolment fee, whether monthly payments and services are included or not, e.g. transport, refectory, special classes, sports, facilities, etc. 

The minimum cost is around €200 per month, while the maximum depends on the services agreed and the type of school, the amount possibly totalling over €500.

Whatever the case, special considerations may apply in each Autonomous Community.

Timetables

These differ according to the level of schooling and the schools, e.g.:

• Nursery school from 09:00 to 12:30 and 15:00 to 17:15
• Primary school from 09:00 to 12:30 and 15:30 to 17:30
• Secondary school from 08:30 to 14:30
• Bachiller (general secondary education) from 08:00 to 14:30
• Intermediate and further education from 09:00 to 15:00

Enrolment period

Applications for primary centres are generally submitted around March and those for secondary centres from April, with a special period in September for intermediate and further education cycles; enrolment is then formalised in June or July, according to the level of schooling concerned; in the case of special applications in September, enrolment takes place during that month.

School calendar

There may be variations between the different Autonomous Communities, but starting dates are in mid September and finishing dates are in June, with holidays at Christmas, Easter and in summer.

Text last edited on: 06/2006

Source: European Union
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