What is the brevet and how to prepare for it?
The brevet is a national diploma that evaluates the knowledge and skills acquired at the end of middle school in France. It is balanced between continuous assessment and final exams. Each subject evaluated has a separate exam, except for sciences (two subjects), and an oral exam for school candidates.
The brevet is not a prerequisite for accessing a higher class at the end of ninth grade, but it is a valuable recognition of the student’s achievements and abilities. It also prepares the student for the baccalaureate exam at the end of high school.
In this article, we will explain the objectives and structure of the brevet, the dates and subjects of the exams, and some tips and resources to help you revise and succeed.
Objectives and structure of the brevet
The brevet aims to assess the mastery of the common core of knowledge, skills and culture that every student should have at the end of compulsory schooling. It covers eight components: language and literature, foreign languages, mathematics, scientific and technological culture, humanist culture, artistic culture, physical and sports education, and learning methods and social skills.
The evaluation of the common core represents 400 points. The mastery of each component is assessed during the third trimester council of ninth grade:
- Insufficient mastery (10 points)
- Fragile mastery (25 points)
- Satisfactory mastery (40 points)
- Very good mastery (50 points)
The exams represent 400 points. The following subjects are evaluated on 100 points:
- French
- Mathematics
The following subjects are evaluated on 50 points:
- History-geography and moral and civic education
- Sciences (two subjects out of physics-chemistry, life and earth sciences, and technology)
- Oral exam (presentation of a project related to one of the teaching paths followed by the student)
The student obtains the brevet if he or she scores at least 400 points out of 800. There are three levels of distinction: honors (at least 480 points), high honors (at least 560 points), and very high honors (at least 640 points).
Dates and subjects of the exams
The written exams of the brevet for all candidates will take place on Monday June 26th and Tuesday June 27th 2023 for the normal session and on Monday September 18th and Tuesday September 19th 2023 for the replacement session.
The French exam (3 hours) will take place in two parts (grammar and linguistic skills, comprehension, interpretation skills and dictation then writing exercise) on Monday morning. It will start at 9 am.
The mathematics exam will take place in the afternoon and will last two hours (from 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm).
The history-geography and moral and civic education exam will take place on Tuesday morning (from 9 am to 11 am) and will be followed at 1:30 pm by the sciences exam. This exam, which lasts only one hour, will require you to deal with two subjects out of the three proposed (physics-chemistry, life and earth sciences, and technology).
The oral exam specific to school candidates will take place between June 15th and July 3rd 2023. It will consist of a 15-minute presentation of a project related to one of the teaching paths followed by the student during ninth grade: citizenship education, artistic education or health education.
Tips and resources to revise and succeed
To prepare well for the brevet, you need to organize your revision time, review your lessons regularly, do exercises and practice tests, and use various resources to consolidate your knowledge.
Here are some tips and resources to help you revise effectively:
- Make a revision schedule that covers all the subjects and components of the brevet. Plan short sessions of about 30 minutes with breaks in
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