Te'udat Bagrut (Hebrew: תעודת בגרות) is the official Israeli matriculation certificate. The bagrut is similar to the British A-levels, German Abitur, French Baccalauréat, and Austrian Matura. The certificate is given to the student after passing written (and in some cases oral) exams, and obtaining a passing mark (55% or higher) in each exam.
The entire process of the examination is governed by the country's Ministry of Education. Furthermore, the exams of all compulsory subjects (see below), and most facultative subjects, are designed and written by the Ministry as well, thereby creating a standard measure of the students' knowledge throughout the country. For those studying in academically-oriented high schools (rather than vocationally-oriented secondary schools or tracks), the overall objective of the last three years of secondary education in Israel is to prepare the student for taking the bagrut exams.
The following subjects are compulsory for obtaining the certificate:
For most subject matter exams, the student may choose the level of difficulty he or she would like to be tested under. This level of difficulty is expressed as "units of study" (yehidot limud), from 1 (least difficult) to 5 (most difficult). In order to receive a "full" matriculation certificate, the student must take and pass at least one subject matter exam at the 5-unit level of difficulty and earn a total of at least 21 combined study units in all bagrut exams taken. Correspondingly, the make up of a student's classes during his or her high school years is matched to the student's expected units of study they will test in their bagrut exams. So for example, a student who is planning to take the 5-unit mathematics exam will take mathematics courses specifically designed for a 5-unit level of difficulty all throughout their high school career.
A copy of the 2010 mathematics exam (in the four and five units levels) was leaked to students, but a teacher reported it to authorities and all tests were replaced.[1]