Short term High school preparation

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• What is a short-term gymnasium?

  The short-term Gymnasium (short-term grammar school) is one of two types of public Gymnasium in the canton of Zurich. The other type is the long-term Gymnasium (long-term grammar school) in Zurich. The short-term Gymnasium and the long-term Gymnasium differ in particular in the following points: 

  - Latin is not compulsory at the short-term Gymnasium, while it is compulsory for the first two years at the long-term Gymnasium 

  - the short-term Gymnasium lasts 4 years and starts either after the 2nd or the 3rd secondary school class, the long-term Gymnasium lasts 6 years and starts after the 6th primary school class   

  The short-term Gymnasium and the long-term Gymnasium have in common that both types of Gymnasium end with the Gymnasium Matura, which allows students to study at a university, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) and the University of Teacher Education (PH). However, there are admission restrictions or numerus clausus procedures for certain subjects.   

  Further information on the subject can be found in our article "Difference long-term and short-term grammar school Zurich - which is better?".

• Why should you go to short-term grammar school?

  The short-term Gymnasium follows after the 2nd or 3rd secondary school class. The child can also choose another type of school, provided it passes the appropriate entrance examination. In addition to the short-term Gymnasium, there is also the vocational Matura school, the commercial Matura school, the computer science Matura school and the secondary technical school. There are also specialised Gymnasia: the Rämibühl Art and Sports Gymnasium in Zurich and the Liceo Artistico, a bilingual art Gymnasium for visual arts (German-Italian). 

  When choosing the type of school after secondary school, the child's inclinations and interests play a role. However, the choice of further education also depends heavily on the parents' home and social environment. It would be a fallacy to claim that the students make a choice completely independent of the family. The parents' professions have a great influence. If one of the parents is a doctor, the child does not necessarily choose a medical education, but often a profession with social contacts such as psychology, teaching professions, etc. The same applies to technical professions. This is not surprising, because your child feels secure at home and is familiar with the parents' professions through conversations in the family. Therefore, your child associates familiar professional fields with security and safety.

  The short-term Gymnasium offers many mathematical and scientific subjects (the so-called MINT subjects) as well as new and old languages. General education in geography, history, biology and environmental studies broadens the student's personal horizons and explains to them the interdisciplinary connections that enable them to actively participate in shaping our society. This variety is extraordinary.

• When should one start preparing for the short-term gymnasium?

  Those who want to change to the Gymnasium after the 2nd or 3rd secondary school class, i.e. transfer to the short-term Gymnasium, should start preparing for the Gymnasium at the latest during the 1st secondary school class, as not only the exam mark of the entrance examination counts, but also the marks in certain subjects in the secondary school. There are special preliminary courses for early Gymnasium preparation in the subjects of mathematics, German, English and French, as well as supplementary courses in French and English. 

  Those who want to transfer to the short-term Gymnasium after the 2nd secondary school class should then also start a Gymnasium preparation course for the short-term Gymnasium from the first semester of the 2nd secondary school class. Those who want to transfer to the Gymnasium at the end of the 3rd secondary school class should start a Gymnasium preparation course for the short-term Gymnasium from the first semester of the 3rd secondary school class.