Education System in Trinidad and Tobago

The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an island located in the northern part of South America, just off the coast Venezuela and Grenada.  It also shares maritime boundaries with Guyana and Barbados.

Trinidad and Tobago has a tropical climate because of its location and experiences two seasons – dry for the first half and monsoon for the next half of the year.  The maximum high temperature is 39 degrees Celsius and the minimum low is recorded at 12 degrees Celsius.

The Education System of Trinidad and Tobago provides free and compulsory education for students aged between five and sixteen. It’s considered to me one of the most educated countries in the world with a literacy rate of over 98 percent.  Trinidad and Tobago has educational institutions ranging from pre-schools to universities. Education is funded by the government with the help of the Ministry of Education of Trinidad and Tobago, by providing books and transport at the primary and secondary level of education.

Primary Education in Trinidad and Tobago is free and compulsory for children from ages 5 to 16. Also there are many Pre-Schools. Students can enrol in pre-school at age 3. Primary schooling starts at  age 5. It comprises 7 years of education followed by a secondary entrance assessment.

Attending Secondary school is compulsory for the first 5 years during which time a traditional academic curriculum is followed. This leads to completion of the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate. After this stage students can study for 2 more years at secondary school. And this further leads to a Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Certificate. Also at this stage students are eligible to write entrance exams for tertiary education admission. 

University education in Trinidad and Tobago is free at undergraduate level and few government subsidies are available for master’s programmes.