Español
  Français

Education in Honduras

You are here: Countries / Honduras

The Constitution of Honduras provides for a free and compulsory primary education for children seven to 13 years of age, under an educational system supervised by the Ministry of Education. The pre-primary education is non-compulsory and is provided by both public and private schools for children aged four to six, and is divided into three stages, namely: pre-kindergarten, kindergarten and preparatory. After these stages, pupils enter the 6-year primary or elementary school where they are taught basic skills and practical subjects like agriculture and physical education. The secondary education consists of the Lower and Upper levels, with the Lower level accepting students who have completed six years or primary education, and who are 13 to 16 years of age. Under this level are the 2-year general and the pre-vocational cycles that prepare them for vocational career or the next academic level. The Upper level is called the diversified education for two years for students 16 to 18 years old, and students who have completed the general culture common cycle under the Lower level.

Higher education is offered by the country’s various colleges and universities, led by the country’s oldest university founded in 1847—the National Autonomous University of Honduras in Tegucigalpa, with branches in San Pedro Sula and La Ceiba. The three other private universities are the Jose Cecilio del Valle University, and the Central American Technological University both in the capital, and the University of San Pedro Sula in San Pedro Sula. Non-formal or adult education, which is also offered in some institutions in the country, focuses on literary, agrarian education and community development, and vocational programs.