| Switzerland | USA | |
| Entry and duration | Compulsory education: 11 years (except for Ticino). Usually Kindergarten entry at the age of 4. | Students have to attend school until the age of 16. KG starts at the age of 5. |
| School system | Primary school / Primarschule Grades 1-6 (8 incl. 2 yrs of KG) Lower secondary school / Oberstufe: Grades 7-9 Upper Secondary / Mittelschulen: Grades 10-12. NOT to be confused with US middle school! | Elementary School Grades KG – 5 Middle School Grades 6 – 8 High School Grades 9 – 12. Junior High School (Grades 7 – 9) Senior High School (Grades 10 – 12). |
| Middle/ high school and ability levels | Selective schooling after primary, either ability grouping (ability sets in single subjects) or ability tracking (different ability schools) (or both!). – Most children attend grades 7-9 in one of the 2, 3 or 4 different ability tracks. | – Mostly comprehensive schooling. Differentiation through: – Ability grouping in single subjects -Enrichment programs -Advanced Placement options in high school. |
| Finance | -Split across cantons, communes and the federal state (Federal state 17.3 %, cantons 52.2 % municipalities 30.5 %). Subsidies for less wealthy cantons and communes. – Little difference in terms of quality and resources at regional and subregional level. – Switzerland annually spends 14’922 $ per student p.a. | – Split across federal state and counties. – Federal state responsible for education budget, different state, different budget! – County share through property tax, leads to big regional differences – Overall 11’500 $ per student p.a. |
| Private schools and home-school | 5% private schools, under 0.5% homeschooling | 10% private schools, 4-5% homeschooling |
| School subjects | 2 modern foreign languages compulsory from primary school, (1 language in the lowest ability level in secondary) | Only ten out of 50 federal states make learning one foreign language compulsory, usually Spanish |
| School system and syllabus | Regional differences but overall a unified school system and similar curriculum | Range of different organisational systems, federal states set their own standards and districts may set their own curriculum. |
| Curriculum | Standardised curriculum in middle/upper secondary. Very limited subject choice | From middle school: Core academic subjects and high number of electives |
| University entrance | Different university entrance qualifications – academic, specialised or vocational Matura diploma, IB. | High school diploma, IB |
| School exit certificate and exams | Exit examination for students in 4- or 6-yr academic Gymnasium or upper secondary schools (Matura exam). No general exit exam after the end of compulsory school. | High school diploma at the end of year 12. Approx. 50% of federal states have high school exit examinations. |
| High school graduation rate | Overall matura diploma rate: 40 %. 21,8% academic track/Gymnasium Matura/Maturité), 15,8% vocational university entrance qualification/ Berufsmatura, and 3,3% specialised upper secondary / Fachmatura | High school graduation rate: 82% |
| School weeks and holidays | School weeks per year: 38/39 weeks. Annual school holidays: 13 weeks | School weeks per year: 36 weeks Annual school holidays: 16 weeks |
