Matura

Matura (Matur, Maturita) is the word commonly used in Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Liechtenstein, Poland, Serbia, Slovenia and Switzerland for the final exams young adults (aged 18 or 19) take at the end of their secondary education. In the Czech Republic and Slovakia this exam is officially called maturita, matura is used in slang.

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This happens usually after 12 or 13 years of schooling. Each candidate that passes their final exams receives a document that contains their grades and which formally enables them to go to a university. In countries such as Austria, this document alone allows entry to any university, as the grades themselves are irrelevant; whereas in other countries there can be numerus clausus, meaning that certain standards need to be met in the Matura grades before acceptance at a university.

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The equivalent British term (except Scotland) is "A-levels", the Scottish is "Advanced Higher Grade", the German is "Abitur" and the French is "le baccalaur?at", or simply "le bac".

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Austria: The Republic of Austria (German: Republik ?sterreich) is a landlocked country in central Europe. It borders Germany and the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west. The capital is the city of Vienn...

Bosnia and Herzegovina: Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H; locally: Bosna i Hercegovina/????? ? ???????????) is a triangular mountainous country in the western Balkans with an estimated population of about 4,000,000 people. The country is the homeland of its three constitutional peoples; Bosniaks, Croats, and Serbs, and is famou...

Bulgaria: The Republic of Bulgaria (Bulgarian: ????????? ????????) is a republic in the southeast of Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the east, Greece and Turkey to the south, Serbia and Montenegro and the Republic of Macedonia to the west, and Romania to the north along the river Danube. It is one of Euro...