Syllabuses and Attainment descriptors

The syllabuses of all the language sections are – with the exception of mother tongue – identical and the same standards are required to be met. All the syllabuses followed in the different sections lead up to the same examination: the European Baccalaureate.

To guarantee recognition of the European Baccalaureate certificate, syllabuses have to meet at least the minimum requirements of all the member states. Since these vary from country to country, syllabuses are designed and written after negotiations between national experts – more particularly the members of the Boards of Inspectors – on the basis of detailed comparison of national curricula.

The syllabuses are then approved by the Joint Teaching Committee of the European Schools, which is the pedagogical supervisory authority.
In general, syllabuses are reviewed and revised every ten years. Minor changes may, however, be made at any time.

The syllabuses are available in the list below. Use several filters (left column) to narrow your search. Then click on the program reference number (in blue in the right column) to open the syllabus in PDF format.

The attainment descriptors are available by selecting ‘Attainment Descriptors’ under ‘Subject-Details’ in the left column, then by selecting at least a cycle, a subject and, if applicable, a language course. Please note that some Attainment Descriptors are published as a chapter of the syllabus itself. If you do not find an Attainment Descriptor here, look for further information on the cover of the syllabus.


Important information on the written examination material for use with the new marking system
in the 2023 European Baccalaureate

Please note that all different materials for the written examination papers to be used in the context of adoption of the new marking system in the European Baccalaureate, produced for the different subjects in which written examinations can be taken in the June 2023 Baccalaureate have been produced under the responsibility of the inspector in charge of the subject. They have been checked to ensure that they meet the requirements of chapter 7 'Use of the new marking scale in the European Baccalaureate' of the document 'Marking system of the European schools: Guidelines for use' 2017-05-D-29 and with an immediate entry into force approved by the Board of Inspectors Secondary.

Please be informed that not all S6 and S7 syllabi, published on the eursc.eu website already include the new marking system annexes, but all the approved material has been made available to schools and teachers.

It must therefore be stressed that the approved New Marking System material that schools and teachers have at their disposal prevails on the information that is in the some syllabi, currently published on the eursc.eu website.



Due to a technical problem, the syllabuses and attainment descriptors are temporarily unavailable.

Please send your requests to osg-webmaster@eursc.eu specifying the desired subject, year level (P3, S5,...) and language version.
The syllabuses listed below are valid for the 2020-21 school year.
For the S7 syllabuses withdrawn for 2020-21, but still in force for the autumn session of the European Baccalaureate, see here :
[news of 31 July]


Due to technical problems which make it temporarily impossible to make changes to the programmes and attainment descriptors published here below, all changes made from 1 March 2023 onwards will be published here.

These changes may include additions of new programmes, replacements due to new versions or deletions.




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