The “Second Chance” program is addressed to adolescents, young people, and adults from diverse social backgrounds and of various ages, who have not attended or completed primary and lower secondary education. The program offers these categories of people the possibility to continue and complete compulsory education without being forced to interrupt their possible professional or family activities in which they are engaged.

The program is structured on two levels: Second Chance – primary education and Second Chance – lower secondary education – the latter also having a vocational training component.

There is no upper age limit for those who wish to enroll in this program. The condition is that they have exceeded by at least 4 years the age corresponding to their grade and find themselves in the following situations:

For the Second Chance – primary education program:

• have not participated at all in formal (school) education;
• were enrolled but abandoned primary education – regardless of the moment and reasons for dropping out;
• did not complete primary education by the age of 14.

For the Second Chance – lower secondary education program:

• have completed compulsory primary education (including in the Second Chance system) but did not continue their education further

or:

• have completed part of the grades corresponding to lower secondary education (V, VI, or VII), but dropped out during this cycle – regardless of the moment and reasons for dropping out.

The Second Chance program is a flexible program, aiming to motivate the learners and to encourage them to complete it, to provide more autonomy to schools in terms of its implementation, as well as the necessary support to all those involved, through teacher training programs and educational materials for both learners and teaching staff. Through this program, innovative elements have been introduced in the educational process, such as: modular curriculum and credit system for basic education, assessment, certification and recognition of the skills previously acquired by the learners, provision of an individualized training program.

Enrollment in the Second Chance program can be done every year, in two sessions: October and February.

Students enrolled in the program may have very different levels and expectations. The new program provides a transparent offer of modules that students can follow in order to acquire skills, as a result of participating in cooperative learning activities, in real contexts and with tasks and topics that meet their interests and needs.

Learning will take place in small groups (8–15 students in each class). The courses may be carried out in several schedule options (during the week in the afternoon or evening, on Saturdays, or during school holidays, etc.) depending on the possibilities of the learners and the teaching staff. Individual consulting hours are scheduled for students.

The program has a flexible duration. The average schooling period (2 years for primary education, and 4 years for lower secondary education) may be reduced for each student, depending on the competencies demonstrated, both in basic education and vocational training.

Graduates have the right to continue their studies, according to the law, as follows:

Graduates of the Second Chance Program - primary education can continue their studies in lower secondary education;

Graduates of the Second Chance Program - lower secondary education can continue their studies in upper secondary education (the upper cycle of high school) or can undergo practical training stages, after which they have the possibility to also obtain a professional qualification certificate level 3.

For the young people in the program, the graduation certificate will not represent just a personal achievement, but the chance for a different tomorrow.