About the National Certificate of Educational Achievement
The National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) is the main secondary school qualification in New Zealand.
NCEA is three qualifications, Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3. Students usually begin studying for their NCEA Level 1 in Year 11 and continue through Years 12 and 13. Students usually study NCEA between the ages of 15 to 18.
Students can also study towards vocational (work) qualifications in secondary schools, such as the New Zealand Certificate in Tourism, the New Zealand Certificate in Computing, and many more.
On this page
About secondary schools in New Zealand
New Zealand students must attend school until they are 16 years old. Study at secondary school begins when students are 12 or 13 years old and lasts for about five years, from Year 9 to Year 13.
Secondary school is also known as high school or college.
Most secondary schools in New Zealand are state-owned, and teach a nationally set curriculum. There are also privately owned secondary schools. Most privately owned schools are based on specific education or religious traditions.
New Zealand's secondary schools offer national qualifications that are recognised by tertiary institutions in New Zealand and internationally.
In New Zealand, all national secondary qualifications are monitored and checked by government and sector agencies.
Useful links
Understand New Zealand's education system (external link) - Education New Zealand
Education in New Zealand (external link) - Ministry of Education
Find out more about NCEA
How to apply to study overseas
Learn about using NCEA to apply for study in another country
Applying overseas
New Zealand Scholarships and school statistics
New Zealand Scholarships
A New Zealand Scholarship award recognises high-achieving students. Students attempting this separate assessment are usually in Year 13.
Learn moreSchool statistics information
NZQA publishes data on how secondary schools perform in NCEA and in other national qualifications.
View reports