Occupational standards

Occupational standards in Bahrain are established and monitored by various international awarding bodies.  

Curriculum development

In Bahrain, local and international awarding bodies assume complete responsibility for the qualifications framework and curriculum development.

Ministry of Education

The Ministry of Education develops the curricula of public schools in Bahrain. As part of a special project, UNESCO supports the Bahrain Ministry of Education in its efforts to develop new technical disciplines, including curriculum renewal and teacher training in computer maintenance, printing and engineering maintenance.

Private education curricula

Each private educational institute has its own curricula, study plans, courses and textbooks. The Ministry of Education has the right to modify or stop any curriculum or textbooks that are incompatible with the country’s religious or national values.

The Directorate of Private Education supervises Arabic language study, Islamic education and social studies at private schools. The Ministry provides the schools with free textbooks in these subjects and assigns specialists to supervise the teachers of these subjects.

Private schools comply with the curricula and textbooks approved by the Ministry that relate to Arabic courses for Arab students, Islamic education for Muslim students, and Bahrain history and geography for all students.

The training directorate of the Ministry of Labour monitors the curricula of vocational training programmes offered by training providers.

Validation of learning

Bahrain has a wide range of internationally recognised VET qualifications. These are accredited by different awarding bodies that actively participate in assessor training, training delivery, counselling and assessments. National Vocational Qualifications, BTEC-First Diploma, National Diploma, and Higher National Diploma of UK are popular in Bahrain.

Frameworks for achievement and progression

Bahrain generally follows the British standards and qualifications framework. The competence levels and progression of the qualification are determined by the respective awarding body. In some areas, Bahrain follows American, Australian, New Zealand and Canadian frameworks for achievement and progression.