HTX — Technical Upper Secondary School

HTX is the technical upper secondary school. It is a three-year, technical and scientific upper secondary education where you work with technology, science, and innovation – often through projects and experiments in the laboratory instead of only from books. You end with a general university entrance qualification that gives you access to higher education with a strong technical and scientific profile.

§What do you do in everyday life?

On HTX, you alternate between class instruction, project work, and practical work. You conduct experiments in the laboratory, build and test prototypes, program, calculate physics problems, and link theory to real technical challenges. Many tasks are solved in groups where you must investigate a problem, find a solution, and present it — often with documentation, calculations, and a model or product as a result.

• 01You learn to think like an engineer: ask questions, experiment, measure, and document.
• 02You work hands-on with technology, science and innovation – not just theory.
• 03You get a strong profile in mathematics and natural sciences, which opens up many technical courses of study.
• 04You learn to work on projects and collaborate on solving concrete problems.
• 05You can choose a study track that matches your interest – from physics through biotechnology to programming and IT.
• 06You get a general high school diploma, but with a professional emphasis pointing toward technical and natural science subjects.

§How do you get started?

You apply to HTX after primary school in the same way as other upper secondary educations. At a technical gymnasium you choose a study track along the way that determines your main subjects for the rest of the course. The study tracks at HTX can include Physics A and Mathematics A, Programming B and Mathematics A, Biotechnology A and Mathematics A, Biotechnology A and Physical Education B, or Communication/IT A and Programming B. Which tracks are specifically offered can vary from school to school, so it's a good idea to investigate it at the high schools you're considering.

§Way forward

With a secondary school diploma from HTX you can apply to higher education. The technical and scientific profile is especially well suited to engineering IT technology and science studies but a secondary education also gives you a broad foundation if you later find out you want something completely different. Your chosen subject lines and levels may matter for which educations you have access to so it is worth thinking one step ahead when you choose.

“If you love finding out why and how things work, then technical upper secondary school is a place where curiosity becomes a subject.”