Most schools in Estonia are run by local government, but a building program of new state-run high schools has been going on for some years now, including in Narva.

Nonetheless, in Tallinn, this spring, a record number of young people registered for their entrance exams.

According to the Ministry of Education and Research, there are currently 5,392 9th-grade students in general education in Tallinn. If including students from neighboring Harju County, the total rises to 7,765, nearly half of all ninth graders in Estonia.

A large proportion of this total intends to continue education at high school level – after graduating from Põhikool, basic school, the mandatory phase of secondary education in Estonia.

However to attend high school, pupils must pass an entrance exam set by the school of their choice.

Today, Saturday, joint entrance exams are taking place at the state high schools in Tallinn and Harju County, with 3,840 candidates vying for 1,540 spots.

Taavi Vilba, head of on state high school, in Saue, said: "We have been holding these exams for three years, and it can be said that the number of applicants rises year-on-year."

Vilba said that one reason for his school's growing popularity is certainly its location in the Tallinn commuter belt. "The Saue region, is growing, and so is Tallinn more broadly. The next couple of years will also see more primary school leavers, after which the number should fall, however," he said.

Vilba added that looking at current tenth graders at the Saue school, half of them are residents of that municipality, but the other half are from elsewhere, mostly other parts of Harju County and Tallinn itself.

For instance, many live in the Nõmme and Mustamäe districts of the capital – those nearest to Saue in fact.

The numbers show that the creation of three new state upper secondary schools in Tallinn has without doubt affected the number of students in high schools run by municipalities, however.

Pirgit Pedaja, the chief communication specialist at the City of Tallinn education department, said. "Compared with the last academic year, the number of high school students fell by 317."

"As a result, fewer tenth-grade classes were set up at some municipal high schools. This spring's admission, and the following autumn, will spell the moment of truth for the sustainability of each upper secondary level," Pedaja went on.

For example, the long-established Tallinna Pelgulinna gümnaasium (Tallinn Pelgulinn High School) will no longer accept new students into the tenth grade from spring onwards, given the construction of the nearby Pelgulinna riigigümnaasium (Pelgulinn State High School, pictured), which opened last August.

Once the current high school students at the Pelgulinn High School have graduated, it will revert to being a basic school.

Meanwhile, a total of 2,769 young people are applying this spring to study at the Pelgulinn State High School, which has 360 places.

At the same time, this will not be a widespread phenomenon in the capital, Pedaja said.

"Certainly, Tallinn does not plan to close a large number of municipal upper secondary levels. The population forecast shows that the number of high school students in Tallinn is not significantly falling, in the bigger picture," she added.

In the fall of the upcoming academic year, the City of Tallinn is providing 3,348 10th grade places, while state high schools are expecting to welcome nearly 900 students to start at high school level in Tallinn and Harju County.

Strong competition for city schools' places

Nonetheless, despite the emergence of these new state upper secondary schools, in the capital, thousands of young people still aim to enroll in the most sought-after municipal high schools.

Of these, the Gustav Adolf School (GAG), Tallinna 21. Kool (Tallinn High School No. 21), Tallinna inglise kolledž (Tallinn English College) and Tallinna reaalkool (Tallinn Secondary School of Science) are holding joint entrance exams, being taken by 2,473 youngsters.

"This year's number of participants in the joint exams is an all-time record. Possibly, this is because we made the registration period a bit longer this time," Moonika Tambik, high school academic director at GAG, said.

Tambik noted that the number of youngsters picking GAG as their first choice has been increasing each year.

This year, this component accounted for 45 percent of all joint exam participants.

According to Tambik, one reason behind this might be GAG's wide range of academic directions within the high school segment; four classes, but eight directions of study, with of entrepreneurship being most preferred this spring.

There are only 150 spots available next year at GAG, however, so the school is conducting interviews with those who passed the entrance exam.

Tambik said that by April 30, those students who have received an offer must decide if they are going to take it up; if they decide to go to another school, that place is offered to the next on the waiting list.

Schools are to compile their finalized tenth-grade enrollment lists by Jaanipäev (June 24).

Aspiring students from as far afield as Hiiumaa

Meanwhile the Tallinna 32. Keskkool in Mustamäe is also gaining popularity, with 1,200 youngsters applying for 144 high school places, up from 1,189 applicants last year.

"The number of applicants to our school grows every year," Kerstin Vessik, the Mustamäe high school's academic director, said. "We have five distinct study directions in our high school, each with long traditions behind them," she went on.

"Our approach is to see the student holistically: In addition to the academic aspect, we offer opportunities to participate in and organize school life," Vessik added.

Applicants come from all over Estonia, she added; in addition to those from Tallinn, children from as far afield as Hiiumaa and Saaremaa have also taken the exams.

The school is currently conducting the second round of exams. "By the end of April, we will start notifying who will be accepted to the school, who will go on the waiting list, and who will be declined," Vessik said.

The Vanalinna Hariduskolleegium (VHK) in Tallinn's Old Town, which also organized separate high school entrance exams, attracted 600 applicants, according to the school's secretary, Mairi Aas, who said this number was comparable with those of recent years.

Aas also said that at the end of this academic year, VHK is to pass out an unusually large class of 150 school leavers, a number that is beyond the school's capacity due to lack of space.

To avoid a repeat of this, it is likely that fewer students will be accepted into the high school this year, a typical VHK class consists of 130 students.

Aas said applicants for both the humanities and sciences were to be found, with the latter slightly more preferred. Results are expected to be announced in early May since the specialized exams for the arts and theater are still ongoing.

The exact number of students starting high schools in Tallinn and Harju County for the 2024-2025 academic year will be determined in September.

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