Overview
Република Македонија/Republika Makedonija (The Republic of Macedonia) is a landlocked country in southeastern Europe. It is surrounded by Greece, Albania, Serbia, and Bulgaria. The population is 2,061,315; 64.2% Macedonian, 25.2% Albanian,
3.9% Turkish, 2.7% Roma, 4% other. The literacy rate is 96.1%. Macedonian is the official language and most-widely spoken. Albanian is also official language spoken by about 25% of the population.
The area of present day Macedonia has more than 2,500 years of complicated history. Its name is the oldest surviving country name on the European continent. By 300 BC, Philip II unified Macedonia. In the 9th century, the brothers Cyril and Methodius created
the Slavic alphabet and promoted literacy. Macedonia was part of the Byzantine territory until it was conquered by the Ottoman Turks. The Treaty of London in 1913 following the First Balkan War partitioned Macedonia among Greece, Serbia, Bulgaria
and Albania. Greece took the southern half of the country and renamed it Northern Greece. Serbia took the Vardar region and named it Southern Serbia, while Bulgaria took the Pirin region. The partitioning continued after World War I and the Vardar
region was incorporated into the newly-formed Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
With the disintegration of Yugoslavia, a referendum for independence for Macedonia was approved on September 8, 1991. The Federal Republic of Macedonia was admitted to the United Nations in 1993.
Education
Currently, the education system in Macedonia is overseen by the country's Министерство за образование и наука.
Primary and Secondary Education
Education is free and compulsory from ages 7 to 15. Elementary school begins at age 7 and is 8 years. Upon completion, students are awarded a Свидетелство за Завршено Основно Образовање/Svidetelstvo za zavreno osnovno obrazovanie.
Following elementary school, students can continue in a Tehnicki Ucilište (technical secondary school), Ucilište Za Zanimanja (vocational secondary school), art, music and ballet secondary school, or Gimnazija (general
secondary school). All secondary schools are 4 years. Upon completion, technical secondary students are awarded a Svidetelstvo za zavreno sredno tehniko obrazovanie. Vocational secondary school students are awarded a Svidetelstvo za zavreno sredno obrazovanie za zanimaweto.
Art, music and ballet secondary school students are awarded a Svidetelstvo za zavreno sredno umetni-ko/muzi-ko/baletsko obrazovanie. And general secondary school students are awarded a Svidetelstvo za zavreno sredno obrazovanie.
Post-Secondary Education
First and Second Cycles
The first level of university studies is 4 years and students are awarded a Диплома и Стручен Назив/Diplomiran. 1 to 2-year graduate programs award a Диплома и Стручен Назив Специалст/Специализациjа. Two-year graduate programs
award a Диплома и Академски/Стручен Назив Магистер/Magister.
Third Cycle
Doctoral programs are at least 3 years for students who hold a Диплома и Стручен Назив/Diplomiran and at least one year for students who hold a Диплома и Академски/Стручен Назив Магистер/Magister for admission. Upon
successful defense of a dissertation, students are awarded a Доктон на Науки/Doktor na Nauki.
Note: Macedonians who were educated prior to 1991 were part of the educational system of the former Yugoslavia.