Procedure descriptions
Request a school-leaving examination
This allows you to acquire these qualifications retrospectively:
- Secondary school leaving certificate
- Werkrealschulabschluss
- Realschulabschluss
- Higher education entrance qualification
Note: Do you have a lower secondary school leaving certificate without a grade in the foreign language? In this case, you can also take the foreign language examination.
You must prepare yourself independently.
Tip: Many adult education institutions offer preparatory courses for the foreign school-leaving examination
The exam takes place the following year at the end of the school year - usually at the same time as the corresponding exam at public schools.
Responsible department
- Hauptschulabschluss, Werkrealschulabschluss and Realschulabschluss: the state education authority responsible for your place of residence
- Higher education entrance qualification: as a rule, the Regional Council responsible for your place of residence
Details
Prerequisite
General requirements for participation are:
- You have not already taken the desired final examination with success or twice without success.
- You would not take this examination sooner through the out-of-school examination than you would be able to if you attended school normally.
Example: You already have a lower secondary school leaving certificate? Then you are not allowed to take a Hauptschulabschluss examination again (e.g. to get a better grade).
In addition, you must fulfil further requirements, depending on the qualification you are aiming for:
- for the Hauptschulabschluss:
You do not attend a Werkrealschule, Hauptschule, Realschule, a Gymnasium, a Gemeinschaftsschule or a special education and guidance centre (SBBZ) with a corresponding course of education (any more).
Exception:- You attend the 9th grade Gymnasium and your promotion to the 10th grade is at risk; if you are not promoted, you would have to leave the Gymnasium ,
- for the Werkrealschulabschluss:
You do not attend a Werkrealschule, Hauptschule, Realschule, Gymnasium, Gemeinschaftsschule or SBBZ with a corresponding course of education. - for the Realschulabschluss:
You do not attend a Werkrealschule, Hauptschule, Realschule, Gymnasium, Gemeinschaftsschule or SBBZ with a corresponding course of education.
Exception:- You attend a 10th grade Gymnasium,
- Your promotion is at risk and
- if you are not promoted, you would have to leave your school.
- for the higher education entrance qualification (Fachhochschulreife/general higher education entrance qualification):
In the school year in which the examination is taken, you do not attend a public or state-recognised private grammar school or a community school with a grammar school upper level, an evening grammar school or a college. You have your permanent residence in Baden-Württemberg or were prepared for the Abitur examination for non-students at a state-approved private Gymnasium or at another teaching institution in Baden-Württemberg.
Procedure
You must apply in writing for admission to the external school examination. You can obtain the necessary application forms from the competent office.
If you are admitted, you will receive notification of the date and place where the examination will take place. If you are not admitted, you will receive a rejection with written reasons .
Note: You can retake an examination once if you have not passed it, at the earliest after one year.
Deadlines
For registration for the examination:
- Hauptschulabschluss: 1 March
- Werkrealschulabschluss: 1 March
- Realschulabschluss: 1 March
- Higher education entrance qualification: 1 October
Required documents
- Curriculum vitae with details
- about the previous course of education
- if applicable, about the professional activity pursued
- Birth certificate or other proof of identity issued by a public authority, e.g. identity card or passport
- School-leaving or graduation certificates from the schools attended (as certified copies or photocopies)
- Information on the type of preparation for the examination (possibly with supporting documents)
- for the lower secondary school leaving certificate in addition:
- Declaration as to whether you have already taken part in the lower secondary school-leaving examination and, if so, with what success
- Designation of the elective subject of the oral examination as well as the designation and description of the topic of the presentation examination
- if you are attending grade 9 of the Gymnasium, the last half-yearly information and a certificate from the school management stating that you are in danger of being promoted to the next grade
- for the Werkrealschulabschluss additionally:
- A statement as to whether you have already taken the Werkrealschulabschlussprüfung and, if so, with what success
- the name of the subject or subject group in which you will additionally be orally examined
- for the Realschulabschluss additionally:
- A declaration stating whether you have already taken the Realschule school-leaving examination and, if so, with what success
- the name of the optional subjects in which you will additionally be orally examined,
- if you are attending grade 10 of the Gymnasium, the last half-yearly information and a certificate from the school administration stating that you are in danger of being promoted to the next grade
- for the higher education entrance qualification additionally:
- Passport photograph
- Declaration as to whether you have already taken part in an examination for the general or subject-linked higher education entrance qualification and, if so, with what result
- Declaration of which examination subjects you have chosen
Please note: You will find more detailed information on the compulsory examination subjects and on the designation of further examination subjects in the corresponding forms.
Costs
none
Detailed information
- You can find an overview of preparatory courses for the Schulfremdenprüfung in Baden-Württemberg in KURSNET. Select the qualification you are aiming for there.
- You can find more detailed information on the exact procedure of the examination, the individual subjects and the examination dates and locations on the following pages:
- km-bw:
- Regierungspräsidium Tübingen:
- Regierungspräsidium Stuttgart: