Education in Kuwait
School attendance in Kuwait is compulsory for all
children between the ages of six and fourteen, but
public education is provided free to Kuwaiti children
only. All Schools, whether public or private, are
regulated by Ministry of Education (ME). The Kuwaiti
educational system, after kindergarten, consists of
elementary, intermediate and secondary levels, each of
four years duration.
Nursery & Kindergarten
The Ministry provides free kindergartens for Kuwaiti
children between the ages of four and six. There are a
large number of expatriate schools for expatriate
children, aged between two and four years.
Elementary, Intermediate & Secondary Education
Primary education is a right and is offered free of
charge by the State. It is obligatory for all Kuwaitis
from the age of six to 14 attend school - primary school
to the intermediate school.
Attendance at state schools is restricted to Kuwaiti
children, the children of teachers working for the
ME and the children of expatriates who obtained
residence prior to 1960.
All expatriate
children must be educated privately. All foreign
schools in Kuwait must be accredited to the private
Education Department (PED) of the ME. The ME also regulates school fees.
Private schools for non-Arabic children follow their
home country curricula, such as American, British,
French, German, Indian, Pakistani, etc, though all
schools are also obliged to incorporate local cultural
and language studies in to their curricula. Standards
achieved compare favorably with those in the pupils'
home countries.
Private Arabic schools receive some government support,
such land to build schools and free text books but very
little assistance is provided for non-Arabic schools.Fees for non-Arabic private schools very widely.
Transport by bus to and from school is extra. Normally
the costs of textbooks and writing materials are not
included in the fees, and additional fees are
charged for sports and other extracurricular activities.
The academic year runs form late August or early
September to mid-June. Expatriate schools usually have
three days off in October, breaks twice a year of a
fortnight each , and official holidays. The school week
is Saturday through Wednesday. The school day usually
begins 7:45am and finished at 2pm, though these timings
vary a bit between schools.
Higher Education
Education beyond school level is regulated by the
Ministry of Higher Education (MHE). The country has one
university and several technical school. Kuwait
University was established in 1966, with the aim of
providing academic, professional and technical
rehabilitation, and supplying the country with
scientifically and practically qualified manpower in
different fields. Kuwait University is open to
expatriate students, provided their grades meet the
requirements for admission. State-funded adult education
and vocational training is provided by the Public
Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET). PAAET has
several full-time colleges as well as field and
industrial training centers, where studies, may learn
technical and professional subjects including teaching,
commercial studies, nursing, and mechanical and
electrical trades.
Additionally, there are several
private institutions in the country that offer a variety
of full and part-time courses in various subjects such
as business studies, secretarial skills, computing and
languages.
Return To Top