The controversy over the Egyptian Baccalaureate system has moved to Al-Azhar education after the general secondary school, following the Al-Azhar Sheikhdom's announcement of its implementation starting next year.

With Acting Deputy of Al-Azhar Ayman Abdel Ghani confirming on Wednesday that the Baccalaureate system will be applied in Al-Azhar institutes starting from the next academic year, mixed reactions emerged among parents on social media, with demands for "the necessity of reconsidering the decision to ensure the privacy of Al-Azhar education."

One parent said: "The decision may harm Al-Azhar education, especially after the widespread rejection that accompanied the application of the Baccalaureate in general secondary education," while another demanded "defining the subjects for students and exam mechanisms before talking about implementation."

In contrast, the decision was welcomed by some who considered it "a step to ease the burden on Al-Azhar students, because it will reduce the number of subjects studied in the secondary stage."

Abdel Ghani stated that the Baccalaureate system "will apply only to students enrolling in the first secondary grade, and does not apply to students currently enrolled in the second secondary grade, who will continue their studies according to the system applied to them."

Egypt approved legal amendments in August 2025 that include incorporating the Baccalaureate system into the study systems of the general secondary education in public education.

This system is based on two stages: the first is the preparatory stage in the first secondary year, in which 9 subjects are taught, divided into 6 core subjects and 3 subjects outside the total, while the main stage is divided into two years in the second and third secondary years. This system gives students the opportunity to improve their grades that qualify them for university entrance, through the opportunity to take the exam a second time for a fee.

The 'Privacy' of Al-Azhar Education

The application of the Baccalaureate system in general education had sparked discussions and criticism from parents and education experts at the time regarding implementation mechanisms.

However, Minister of Education Mohamed Abdel Latif mentioned earlier that the Baccalaureate system aims to reduce academic pressure on students by reducing the number of subjects and providing multiple opportunities to improve results, "achieving greater fairness in evaluation and measuring the student's level more comprehensively."

Students during Al-Azhar secondary exams last June (Al-Azhar Institutes Sector)

The Acting Deputy of Al-Azhar confirmed in an official statement on Wednesday that "the Al-Azhar Institutes Sector is currently setting the regulatory controls and executive procedures for applying the Baccalaureate in line with the nature and privacy of Al-Azhar education," adding that "the system will be announced soon, while preserving Sharia and Arabic subjects as a fundamental pillar of the Al-Azhar curriculum."

An informed source in Al-Azhar - who preferred not to be named - said the goal of applying the Baccalaureate is to ease things for students. He continued in his interview with Asharq Al-Awsat: "The Sharia and Arabic subjects prescribed for Al-Azhar institute students will not be touched."

More than 900,000 students took the general secondary exams qualifying for university this year. The total number of students who passed the Al-Azhar secondary exams this year reached about 163,677 male and female students. The results of the secondary exams, both general and Al-Azhar, have not yet been announced, as the exams ended during the current month and are now being corrected.

Some Provisions 'Do Not Apply'

Education expert Assem Haggazy expects that Al-Azhar will face greater rejection than that faced by the Baccalaureate in general education, because Al-Azhar "teaches a larger number of subjects, and its religious nature requires that the reduction be calculated precisely."

He added in an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat: "Some provisions of the General Education Baccalaureate will not apply to the Al-Azhar Baccalaureate, such as making passing in religion subject 70 percent and not adding it to the total, because that is not applicable in Al-Azhar, where religious sciences are a fundamental pillar and all of them enter the total."

In Haggazy's belief, "a new Baccalaureate specific to Al-Azhar will be adapted to achieve a balance between the nature of Al-Azhar study and the broad outlines of the Egyptian Baccalaureate."

Female students inside a classroom at an Egyptian school last April (Ministry of Education page on Facebook)

According to the Baccalaureate system approved by the Ministry of Education, the student must pass the subject of religious education, which is listed as a core subject but outside the total with a minimum of 70 percent.

The education expert points out that the fear of parents of Al-Azhar students from the Baccalaureate is due to it being a new system whose details are unclear.

The Baccalaureate system is completely different from the General Secondary Education system, as it gives the student two exam opportunities each year, with the second opportunity requiring a fee per subject of a maximum of 200 Egyptian pounds (about $4), with the possibility of studying additional subjects at any level if the student wishes to have multiple tracks after completing the main track, and setting the maximum number of years of study for the main stage at 4 years.

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