Education in Bulgaria

Due to the fact that Bulgaria is a member of the European Union, all diplomas issued by educational institutions of the country are recognized in the EU member states. At the same time, many Russians and citizens of the CIS countries emphasize how convenient it is for Russian speakers to study in Bulgarian. It is much easier than getting education in other countries, where it has to be done in English, German, French and other languages, the level of which must be high enough for the learning process to be effective. Bulgarian, of course, is also necessary to be fluent, but for Russian-speakers the process of mastering the local language is much faster than when learning languages from other groups. Often one has to deal with the fact that the older generation of Bulgarians know Russian well, so this can become an additional plus in education.

Among the shortcomings (and for some now this will be an advantage) of Bulgarian education, one can name the not very wide development of technologies in the local environment: 54.1% of houses in cities and 18.1% in villages have personal computers, and 51 , 4% and 16.4% respectively - access to the Internet. At the same time, according to statistics from ten years ago, only 19.6% of the country's residents have higher education and 43.4% - secondary. Therefore, in conditions of little competition, it will be quite comfortable to study for almost any foreigner.

Preschool education

There are public and private kindergartens in Bulgaria, while foreigners can also attend any of them, although it is not always easy to get into the municipal kindergarten when it comes to a large city, it is another matter when it is a small settlement, but there you can face another complexity - due to a shortage of groups in the garden may be of different ages and not for all children and parents this may be acceptable. All kindergartens in the country can be attended by children from 3 to 7 years old.

Enrollment in the municipal kindergarten is made on the community website in April, but you can try to do it at other times if there are not enough groups in the kindergarten - in this case it is best to resolve issues directly at the educational institution. A visit to the public garden is free for citizens of the country, but in any case, you need to pay for food and additional classes. As a result, on average Bulgarians pay 20-50 levs (10-25 euros), and foreigners 70-100 levs (35-50 euros). In a private garden, the tuition will be about 300-700 levs (150-350 euros) per month.

Secondary education

From 6 to 7 years old, a preschool class is compulsory, which children graduate either in kindergartens or in schools. At the age of 7 in Bulgaria, children go to school, where they study for 12 years. The first 4 years are elementary school, at the end of which a diploma is issued. Then education continues until the 8th grade, which is recognized as basic secondary education. Then adolescents have the opportunity to continue their education in a regular secondary school for 3-4 years, and in a specialized one, but already for 4-5 years. Admission to special schools is possible after the end of the seventh or eighth grade and it involves passing exams, depending on the profile of the school. Also, secondary education can be obtained in technical schools and colleges, having entered there after the seventh or eighth grade, after completing which in 3-4 years you can get a vocational secondary education.

Bulgarian schools have a six-point grading system, when 6, 5 and 4 are considered good. The atmosphere in local secondary educational institutions is calm, there is no pursuit of high marks among students, so even foreigners, despite the fact that education in public schools is in Bulgarian, will feel comfortable. At the same time, Russian is taught in some schools as a foreign language. According to the Russian educational program, education is conducted in only two educational institutions in Bulgaria: in the private secondary school named after Yuri Gagarin at the Kamchia Sanatorium and Recreation Complex and at the school at the Russian Embassy in Sofia. It is important to take into account that the Bulgarian language is not taught here, so this issue must be resolved on our own.

The school year is divided into two semesters for schoolchildren: from September to early February, and from early February to summer. A student receives secondary education after 12 years of study, after which he must pass exams, the so-called "matura" - the Bulgarian language and literature - a compulsory second subject to choose from. Schools in Bulgaria, as a rule, accept all students, regardless of citizenship. For citizens of the country, primary and secondary education is free, while immigrants will have to pay for the education of their children before obtaining citizenship. In public schools, a child's year of study costs 100-300 euros, and in private schools, this amount can go up to 2000 euros.

Higher education

After joining the European Union, the higher education system in Bulgaria has been significantly unified in accordance with EU standards, thanks to which cooperation with leading foreign universities has been established. According to the general European principle, higher education in Bulgaria is divided into three stages - bachelor (four years of study), master (five years of study) and doctor (four years after receiving the degree "bachelor" or three years after receiving the degree "master", training is carried out strictly according to scientific specialties and disciplines.

Universities in Bulgaria include universities, specialized higher education institutions and colleges. Foreigners, including Russians, have the right to apply for free education in higher educational institutions in Bulgaria within the framework of intergovernmental agreements on educational, cultural and scientific exchange, as well as paid education. Depending on the specific university, for one year of study, it will be necessary to pay from 1000 to 5000 euros.

When entering Bulgarian universities, it is necessary to have a diploma of completed secondary education, the medical certificate and identity card of the candidate must be certified, translated and legalized in accordance with the international agreements of Bulgaria with a particular country. For those who do not speak Bulgarian, universities provide language and specialized training, which necessarily ends with a written and oral exam. Without its successful completion, the enrollment of foreigners in universities, postgraduate studies and specialization is impossible.

Many universities in Bulgaria have programs in which teaching takes place in English, and in some - even in Russian. There are no exams for paid education, it is enough to provide a certificate or diploma along with a letter from the educational institution stating that secondary education is complete, as well as a medical certificate. Payment for the upcoming training is carried out after enrolling in the university and receiving the appropriate certificate of admission. To obtain an immigrant visa "D" and a residence permit in Bulgaria, a student must also obtain a certificate from the Ministry of Education and officially rent a house.

It is worth noting the high quality and low cost of education at medical universities in Bulgaria in Sofia, Varna, Plovdiv, Plevna and in other cities relative to neighboring countries. Therefore, here you can meet many foreigners who come to Bulgaria for professional medical education. As for the general Bulgarian rankings of universities, it is Sofia University named after St. Clement of Ohridski, New Bulgarian University and Technical University of Sofia.

Thank you for your help in preparing the material:

Daria Borzova, Managing Director of Oazis Real Estate

Tatiana Baltakova, managing director of Premier Realty Master