Natural science exams to become mandatory for schools in Latvia

On 27 September the Cabinet of Ministers approved rules for the adoption of mandatory centralised exams in physics, chemistry, biology or other natural sciences starting from 2025/2026 school year.
Students who entered 9th grade this autumn will have to take at least one mandatory natural science exam next spring.
Students will be able to choose which natural science exam to take and on which level.

In the 2023/2024 and 2024/2025 school years students will have to take a mandatory test in one natural science subject.

Adoption of mandatory natural science exams is provided by the report of the Cabinet of Ministers of 2 June 2015, which mentioned plans to adopt a mandatory exam in the 2017/2018 school year.
On top of that, adoption of mandatory exams does not require adding changes to the School 2030 content plan. Physics, chemistry and biology studies are already mandatory across all general secondary education levels.