🇨🇾 Cyprus
This page describes how schools in Cyprus grade pupils, from the first year of primary school (year 1, about age 6–7) to the end of upper secondary, and how to build the same system in MarkBook. Back to Find Your Country.
Check the current rules
This description comes from public sources (ministry pages, national laws, Eurydice) read in October 2026. Rules change with reforms, and schools often have local rules. Check the current official text for anything your school reports to the ministry.
How pupils are graded
Before year 1: Pre-primary is compulsory from age 4 years 8 months (one year). No marks.
| Years | Stage | Scale | Pass | Recipe |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-6 | Dimotiko (primary) | No marks; continuous formative assessment, feedback through parent meetings | Promotion by age; repetition exceptional, once, inspector approval | Written description |
| 7-9 | Gymnasio (lower secondary) | Term grades A-E (A best); written exams 1-20, 20 best | D (10) and above; E (1-9) is fail | School decides |
| 10-12 | Eniaio Lykeio (upper secondary) | 1-20, 20 best | 10 | Whole-number marks |
Values in Gymnasio (lower secondary)
| Value | Local word | English |
|---|---|---|
| A (19-20) | Άριστα | Excellent |
| B (16-18) | Πολύ καλά | Very good |
| C / Γ (13-15) | Καλά | Good |
| D / Δ (10-12) | Σχεδόν καλά | Satisfactory |
| E (1-9) | Αποτυχία | Fail |
Values in Eniaio Lykeio (upper secondary)
| Value | Local word | English |
|---|---|---|
| 19-20 | Άριστα | Excellent |
| 16-18 | Πολύ καλά | Very good |
| 13-15 | Καλά | Good |
| 10-12 | Σχεδόν καλά | Almost good |
| 1-9 | Αποτυχία | Failure |
The year. Primary: three terms, no report cards. Secondary: two four-month terms (τετράμηνα); first ends late January, second at the end of the year. Grades issued twice a year; a final unified written exam in May-June; re-sits in June (lyceum) or September (gymnasio).
Averages and rounding. Lyceum: subjects with a final exam = 35% term 1 + 35% term 2 + 30% final written exam; subjects without = mean of the two terms. Overall annual grade = arithmetic mean of common core, compulsory and elective subject grades. Gymnasio: term letter grades from continuous assessment (oral participation, tests); weighting with the exam not stated by Eurydice. Rounding rule not confirmed.
Passing the year. Gymnasio: not promoted if failed both Modern Greek and Mathematics, three or more exam subjects, two exam + two non-exam subjects, 51+ unexcused or 161+ total absence periods; September re-exam; may repeat a class twice at the same school. Lyceum: promoted with at least 10 in every subject (or one failed non-exam subject with average >= 10); not promoted with three failed exam subjects or two exam + two non-exam; June re-exams (written + oral average >= 10, written >= 6). Graduation also allowed with one failed exam subject >= 8 if exam-subject average >= 12.
Conduct. Conduct (διαγωγή) is recorded by the school, but the scale was not confirmed from an opened source.
Differences between regions or school types. National system (Greek-Cypriot Ministry of Education). Technical/vocational schools (TESEK) have their own regulations. The Turkish-Cypriot north has a separate system, not described.
Common practice that is not official. Teachers commonly mark class tests out of 20 or 100 and keep percentages, then convert to the term letter (gymnasio) or 1-20 mark (lyceum). Not official.
National exams.
- Pancyprian Examinations (Παγκύπριες Εξετάσεις) (year 12): Out of 20
Words you will meet
βαθμός = mark; μέσος όρος = average; τετράμηνο = four-month term; τρίμηνο = primary term; Πιστοποιητικό Προαγωγής = progress certificate; Απολυτήριο = leaving certificate; Ετήσια Έκθεση Επίδοσης = annual performance report; διαγωγή = conduct.
Set it up in MarkBook
Create a gymnasio letter scale A/B/C/D/E with points 20/17/14/11/5 (or ranges 19-20/16-18/13-15/10-12/1-9), E = fail; a 1-20 numeric scale for exams and lyceum, pass 10. Primary: comment columns only. Lyceum per subject: Term 1 (1-20), Term 2 (1-20), Final exam (1-20); calculated annual = 0.35T1 + 0.35T2 + 0.30*Exam, or (T1+T2)/2 for non-exam subjects. Overall average = mean of subject annual grades, two decimals; flag below 10. Gymnasio: term letter columns plus an exam column 1-20 for Modern Greek, History, Mathematics, Physics.
There is no national scale to copy for this country. Use the recipe for your school's own scale on Set Up Any Grading System.
Before you rely on this page
Confidence: medium
The source table for the gymnasio bands is garbled, and the D = 10-12 reading is inferred. The conduct scale and the term-versus-exam weights are not confirmed. Eurydice's gymnasio conversion table is garbled (shows '0-12 = D'); the D = 10-12 reading comes from the lyceum bands and secondary sources. Weighting of term vs exam in gymnasio not confirmed. Conduct scale not confirmed. Reform history: four-month term exams (τετράμηνα) introduced in 2020-21 were replaced from 2023-24 by one final written exam per year (confirmed for lyceum, gymnasio less clear). Pancyprian exact scale (0-20 vs 1-20, decimals) not confirmed from an official page.