What is the difference between a college and a technical school?

After graduating from the ninth grade , the pupils choose to continue their studies at school or to go to a secondary specialized educational institution. Now that our education system is at the stage of transition to a two-level model (according to the Bologna system), secondary specialized education can become almost equal to the bachelor's degree and be an excellent alternative to the higher education that exists at the moment. But how to sort out which institution is better? What is better, more prestigious and higher: college or technical school?

In order to determine what the college differs from the technical school and what is the difference between them, we must first determine what it is.

What is a technical school?

Technical schools are secondary specialized educational institutions that implement basic programs of secondary vocational education in basic training.

In the technical school they receive basic and more practical training in a certain specialty. You can enter a technical school after nine or eleven classes. Depending on the profession being acquired, they study here for two to three years, the principle of instruction resembles that at school. The technical colleges are more highly specialized, they are oriented more toward training the working specialties. At the end of the technical school, a diploma on secondary vocational education is given and the qualification of a "technician" for a particular specialty is assigned.

What is college?

Colleges are secondary specialized educational institutions that implement basic programs of secondary vocational education in basic and in-depth training.

In the college they get more theoretical and in-depth study of a certain profession, they study here for three to four years. Studying in college is similar to studying in higher educational institutions: they teach students by semesters, there are lectures, seminars, sessions are given. Secondary vocational education in the college is obtained in three years, and the program of in-depth training in the fourth year. You can go to college after nine or eleven classes or a diploma of primary or secondary vocational education. Colleges offer a wide variety of specializations: technical, creative or highly specialized. At the end, a diploma is issued on secondary vocational education, the qualification is "technician", "senior technician" in the specialty being studied.

Very often colleges organize or enter into agreements with universities, subjects are taught by teachers of these universities, so often final examinations in the college are simultaneously becoming introductory to them or graduates receive benefits upon admission.

Differences of college from technical school

Thus, we can distinguish the following differences between the technical school and the college:

Considering all that was mentioned above, it is evident that many of the principles of these educational institutions are similar, but there is a significant difference in the process of training specialists in colleges and technical schools. Therefore, only you and your child, on the basis of their further plans, decide that it is better to have a college and further education or a technical school and a working profession.