Secondary School

Secondary schooling in Guyana is tiered. There are senior secondary schools, which tend to be more academic in orientation, junior secondary schools, Community High Schools and Secondary Departments of Primary Schools. Since the current reforms are phased, students who perform well in their primary school assessments are awarded places at top schools such as Bishops' High School, St. Stanislaus College,St.Joseph High School, St. Rose's High School, President's College and Queen's College rather than a school in their geographic catchment area.

For the most part, the curriculum offered in secondary schools is that of the CXC geared towards preparing students to leave secondary school with subject passes at the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) or the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE). CSEC is equivalent to the UK's General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) and CAPE to A-levels. The senior and junior secondary schools prepare students for the CSEC and CAPE qualifications, but the Community High Schools and secondary departments prepare students for the Secondary Schools Proficiency Examination (SSPE); students who do well on this exam may transfer to senior or junior secondary schools. Students attending senior or junior secondary schools attend from Grade 7 to Grade 11 for CSEC and move on to Grade 12 if interested in the CAPE qualification. Community High and students in secondary departments of primary schools, attend from Grade 7 to Grade 10. GCSE and A-level examinations are still offered in some schools but they are expected to be phased out as part of the educational reforms.

Since the 1990s Guyana has seen the return of faith schools, primarily in the secondary sector. There is one International School - the Georgetown International School. The other private schools recognised by the Ministry of Education are: ISA Islamic School (Muslim), Mae's School, The New Guyana School, The School of the Nations (Bahai) and Marian's Academy (Roman Catholic). These private schools have become highly desirable as they are seen to offer a better quality of education compared to public schools.

In most cases, students are considered to have had a good secondary education after obtaining a minimum of five CSEC subjects at the CXC; depending on their career interests, students may spend a further two years in secondary school for CAPE offerings or proceed directly to further or higher education courses. Though the CSEC subjects are normally taken in Grade Eleven and the CAPE subjects in Grades Twelve and Thirteen, students may take them earlier if so prepared. Students are required to take a foreign language in some schools, but outside of core subjects, the curriculum generally allows students to focus on their interests. The International Baccalaureate IB programme is not available in Guyana, but parents and students interested in the Advanced Placement AP programme can pursue it at the Georgetown International School.

Anna Regina Multilateral school and President's College are Guyana's only boarding schools; both of them are co-educational public schools.