Language/Swedish/Culture/Education-in-Sweden
The Swedish education system consists of nine years of compulsory comprehensive school, or grundskola as it's referred to in Swedish. After grundskolan, you have the Swedish counterpart of high school, which in Swedish is known as gymnasieskola. There are a large variety of different programs offered to the students who start gymnasiet. These programs are both of a practical, as well as of a more theoretical nature, and while some will provide the students with an education that they can put into use directly after graduating, others are more designed to be a stepping stone to further studies at university. The education offered at Swedish high schools is voluntary, but most Swedish youth still attend. In fact, statistics show that as many as ninety percent start high school, but quite a few drop out or graduate with grades that are too poor to get accepted to universities or colleges.