Education in Venadia

Education in Venadia

Agency Ministry of Education Minister Ivan Gadunov (LRP) Economy Budget 271.8 billion NSD % of GDP 7.2% General details Languages Venadian White Venadian Regional Languages Compulsory education 1855 Literacy Total 99.1% Male 99.3% Female 98.9% Enrollment Total 40.5 million Primary 18.9 million Secondary 10.2 million Tertiary 11.4 million Attainment (adults) Secondary diploma 69.3 million (58.9%) Tertiary diploma 36.6 million (31.2%)

Education in Venadia is overseen by the Ministry of Education, and implementation is the responsibility of a mixture of national, regional and local government. Education is largely divided into four stages based on age: pre-school (ages 2-5), primary school (ages 6-13), secondary school (ages 14-18) and tertiary education (ages 19+). The majority of Venadian education is public, with 93% of primary school enrollment, 89% of secondary school enrollment and 76% of tertiary education enrollment being in state-run institutions. Private schooling consists of a mixture of independent schools, religious schools and home-schooling.

Primary schooling is mandatory, while secondary and tertiary are optional. State-schools are all free of tuition or charges up to and including the tertiary level for Venadian citizens. Secondary schooling is split between profession-focused trade schools and general education high schools. Higher/tertiary education usually begins with a three-year bachelor's degree, with post-graduate degrees including masters' degrees and doctorates.

Venadia had a literacy rate of 99.1% as of 2015. 31.2% of the adult population had some form of tertiary degree as of January 2016, 58.9% of adults had completed secondary schooling and 99.3% had completed primary education. Venadian education rates favourably compared to global standards, especially within the fields of engineering, language and natural sciences.

History

Until 1855, Venadian education was a largely private affair, consisting largely of schools run by the Catholic Church, independent schools, University corporations and private tutoring & home-schooling. The Education Act of 1855 established the first national curriculum, as well as six years of mandatory schooling provided by the state. Public education would continue to expand, culminating in the creation of the State Universities in 1921 and the creation of the Venadian comprehensive public schooling system.

The first Venadian University, the University of Kury, was created by Papal Bull in 1584. The 16th and 17th century saw the establishment of numerous universities in Venadia, as well as the establishment of numerous independent and religious schools. Several of these schools and universities, while not governed directly by the government, were supported by the Great Veche and the Grand Prince in order to educate a larger administrative class in Venadia.

Higher Education

Venadia has a total of 316 institution of higher education, consisting of a mixture of state universities, corporate universities and colleges. Enrollment in higher education was at 11.4 million as of 2015, with the majority of these in state-universities.

State Universities

State Universities are state-run institutions of higher education, and have no tuition cost for Venadian citizens. These are mostly located in larger cities and have relatively large student populations. Few State Universities have much prestige attached, but they offer a world-class education within their fields and tend to offer a broad range of degrees. The vast majority of tertiary students in Venadia attend a state university. Venadia had 225 State Universities as of 2016, with a total enrollment of 8.7 million.

Corporate Universities

The Corporate Universities are private and usually older universities organized as corporations. Corporate Universities are allowed a high degree of autonomy from the government, and are funded by often hefty tuitions and endowments. All of Venadia's older institutions of higher learning are Corporate Universities, with a small number of ones established in the modern era. As of 2016, there are a total of 56 as of 2016, with an enrollment of 1,2 million. A significant number of students at Corporate Universities (19%) come from abroad due to the high quality of education.

While the majority of students at Corporate Universities are from upper class, professional and upper-middle class backgrounds, a sizeable number of students (roughly 100,000) are funded by private scholarships and are from unprivileged backgrounds. A significant number of Corporate Universities are located outside of large cities, often having university towns formed around themselves over the centuries. Most Corporate Universities located within modern cities were originally founded outside of medieval cities that eventually grew around them.

The most prestigious Corporate Universities in Venadia are the University of Kury, the University of St Viktor, the Povarino University, the Academy of Sady, the Gorbyli University and the Luchinki University.

Independent Colleges

The last group of institutions of higher learning is also the most recent ones. Independent Colleges are private institutions, but subsidized by the Venadian state and thus offer relatively low tuition charges. Independent Colleges were instituted in 1973 in order to provide a private education alternative outside of the expensive Corporate Universities. A significant number of Independent Colleges are established by religious organizations and private companies. Venadia had 35 independent colleges as of 2016, with a total enrollment of 1.5 million.