At the beginning of the second semester of S3, students select their courses for S4–S5. They are required to take the following compulsory courses:

In addition to the compulsory courses, each student must select courses from the following electives. The weekly course load must be between a minimum of 31 and a maximum of 35 hours for students who have chosen the four-lesson math course, and between a minimum of 33 and a maximum of 35 hours for those who have chosen the six-lesson math course.

The curriculum allows for a maximum of 35 lessons per week to enable certain students to choose two four-hour elective courses. However, choosing 35 hours per week should be the exception rather than the rule. It would not be wise to overload the students.

As a general rule, a minimum of 7 students is required to offer elective courses. In addition, offering these courses depends on the students’ individual needs and the availability of classrooms at ESS. The final decision on whether a course is offers is with the school administration.

Since some of the electives must be scheduled at the same time, it may not be possible to offer all possible combinations of electives. If this is the case, parents will be contacted to review their choices. Within the limits of the schedule, the school will do its best to accommodate as many requests as possible.

Starting in S4, the subject of Human Sciences is divided into the disciplines of Geography and History, which are taught in the first foreign language (L2). Economics should also be taught in L2, but in accordance with the language policy of the European Schools, it may also be taught in the language of the host country (in this case: German), also known as the Host Country Language. You can find more information about the language policy at ESS here.

• ESS Kursbooklet zur S4-Wahl (DE)
• ESS Course Booklet for S4 (EN)