Iran diploma

Overview

The Iran diploma, formally the Certificate of Completion of Secondary School Studies (Diplom-e Payan-e Tahsilat-e Motevaseteh), is awarded at the end of upper secondary school, normally after grade 12. Education from kindergarten through grade 12 is centrally run by the Ministry of Education, which sets the curriculum, trains and assigns teachers, and oversees grading and examinations nationwide. The diploma marks the end of general secondary education and is the usual entry requirement for Iran's university entrance exam, the Konkur, which is a separate exam covered on its own page.

Who can apply

The diploma is earned by students completing upper secondary school (grades 10 to 12) within Iran's general (academic) education track. After lower secondary school (through grade 9), students choose a stream for grades 10 to 12. The academic branch offers:

• Mathematics-Physics (Riyazi)

• Experimental/Natural Sciences (Tajrobi)

• Humanities and Literature (Ensani)

Alongside the academic branch, students can instead follow a Technical-Vocational (Fanni va Herfei) or Work-and-Knowledge (Kar-Danesh) path, which leads to a vocational-track diploma focused on a specific trade or technical field rather than the three academic streams above. Private candidates who are not enrolled in a school can also register to sit the exams for subjects they still need, through the Ministry of Education's evaluation offices.

Exam pattern

Each subject in the final year is assessed through a combination of in-class/coursework assessment and a final exam for that subject, both reported on Iran's 20-point scale. For grade 12, final exams for a given subject are set and marked either at the national level or at the provincial (ostani) level, depending on the subject and the Ministry of Education's yearly arrangements; students sit each subject's exam on a centrally published schedule rather than choosing when to take it.

The exact subjects and weighting differ by stream: Mathematics-Physics students are examined more heavily on mathematics, physics and related sciences; Experimental Sciences students on biology, chemistry and physics; and Humanities students on literature, history, geography and social sciences. All streams share common subjects such as Persian language and literature, Arabic, religious and Quranic studies, and a foreign language.

Marking and results

Each subject is scored out of 20. A score of 10 or above is generally needed to pass that subject; a subject that is failed can usually be resat in a later exam period. A student's overall secondary-school record is expressed as a grade-point average across their subjects, calculated on the same 20-point scale, which appears on the diploma transcript alongside the individual subject scores. Because grading authority is split between national and provincial exam committees, the exact mix of coursework versus final-exam weighting for a given subject is set by the Ministry of Education for each academic year.

Important dates

Iran's school year is split into terms within the Iranian calendar (starting around late September), with a first-term exam period typically held around Dey (late December to mid January) and the main final exams for the year typically held around Khordad (late May to late June), followed by a resit/supplementary period for students who need to retake a subject. Exact start and end dates, and which subjects are examined on which day, are published by the Ministry of Education each academic year and can shift from the typical windows described here (for example, due to public holidays or regional circumstances), so check the current year's official calendar rather than relying on fixed dates.

How it's administered

Schools and provincial education departments administer day-to-day teaching and coursework assessment under Ministry of Education oversight, while final exams for grade 12 subjects follow centrally issued papers and schedules, with grading split between national and provincial committees depending on the subject. Results and the final diploma are issued through the school and the provincial education department once all required subjects have been passed.

After the exam

Earning the diploma completes general secondary education and is the standard prerequisite for registering for the Konkur, Iran's national university entrance exam, which is run separately by Iran's university-entrance testing organisation and is not part of the diploma itself — see the Konkur's own page for its pattern and dates. Before an education reform around 2019, students intending to sit the Konkur also completed a one-year pre-university programme (Pish Daneshgahi) after the diploma; under the current 12-year structure this separate pre-university year has been folded into regular secondary school, so most current diploma holders do not need it. Diploma holders who do not pursue the Konkur can also enter the labour market or technical/vocational training directly, particularly those from the Technical-Vocational or Work-and-Knowledge paths.

Preparation tips

• Confirm your current stream's exact subject list and credit requirements with your school, since weighting and subject choice depend on the stream (Mathematics-Physics, Experimental Sciences, Humanities, or a Technical-Vocational/Work-and-Knowledge path).

• Treat coursework and in-term assessment seriously, since it is combined with the final exam score rather than replaced by it.

• Practise past final-exam papers for your stream's core subjects, since national and provincial exam committees tend to follow a similar style from year to year.

• Keep track of the published exam calendar for your province each year, since exact dates and resit windows are set annually by the Ministry of Education and can change.

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