Тypes of schools

According to the Law on Secondary Education, following types of schools are available for secondary education:

•    General secondary schools, most commonly called gymnasiums, which last 4 years and offer general education, usually followed by admission to a higher education institution. This type of school is considered completed with the passage of a graduation exam at the end of the 4th grade.
•    Vocational secondary schools that last 3 or 4 years and offer primarily specialized education (each school or program is focused on a specific field of study), which prepares students to enter the labour market or, in some cases, continue their education. The completion of a vocational secondary school involves the passage of a graduation exam (for 4-year programmes) or a final exam (for 3-year programmes) at the end of the final grade.
•    Mixed secondary schools offer a combination of general and vocational education. These schools commonly exist in small towns, usually as the only locally available schools.
•    Art schools, such as music and ballet schools. These schools can be mixed schools with both art and general education subjects. Alternatively, students may enroll an art school and another general or vocational secondary school at the same time. 
•    Adult education schools that can be general or vocational.
•    Special education secondary schools for students who cannot participate in regular schools. Students with disabilities are encouraged to participate in regular schools when possible.

Schools are mainly public and free, although private schools are also available. The language of instruction is Serbian, while other languages of instruction for national minorities are available where necessary (e.g. Hungarian, Romanian, Albanian etc.).