Depending on provincial requirements for graduation, a student may build a secondary program by selecting from a number of subject areas. In general, however, high school programs provide two streams. One prepares students for university, the other for an occupation or further post-secondary education at a community college or institute of technology. Provincial departments specify high school graduation requirements but the students and their parents decide, in consultation with the school, on the particular subjects a student takes, and their level. All provinces have now abolished graduation examinations administered by their departments of education, leaving individual schools to set, conduct and mark their own examinations.
Separate schools conform to provincial standards on curriculum, textbooks etc.
In all but one province there exist schools which operate outside the public tax-supported systems. These private or independent schools have been established as alternatives to the public system on the basis of religion, language, or social or academic status. Private kindergarten and nursery schools also exist for children of pre-school age. Education standards in elementary and secondary schools are set individually by each province. Questions about the relative parity of educational qualifications from outside of Canada is a matter for each school or school board in Canada, but guidance may be obtained from the ministry of education in the province concerned.