The Hauptschulabschluss is a school leaving certificate in Germany. The Hauptschulabschluss may be awarded to students who graduate from a Hauptschule

Hauptschule

A Hauptschule is a secondary school in Germany and Austria, starting after 4 years of elementary schooling, which offers Lower Secondary Education according to the International Standard Classification of Education...

 or Abendhauptschule

Abendhauptschule

An Abendhauptschule is a German class of secondary school for mature students which allows them to gain the Hauptschulabschluss. Classes are usually held in the evening....

. It may also be awarded to students who leave the Realschule

Realschule

The Realschule is a type of secondary school in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein. It has also existed in Croatia , Denmark , Sweden , Hungary and in the Russian Empire .-History:The Realschule was an outgrowth of the rationalism and empiricism of the seventeenth and...

, Gymnasium or the Gesamtschule after having successfully completed 9th or 10th grade (depending on the State of Germany).

Those who receive the Hauptschulabschluss may start an apprenticeship and enroll in a vocational school

Vocational school

A vocational school , providing vocational education, is a school in which students are taught the skills needed to perform a particular job...

 or they may also enroll in another school in order to receive other school leaving certificates such as the Mittlere Reife

Mittlere Reife

The Mittlere Reife is a school leaving certificate in Germany that is roughly comparable with the American high school diploma. It is regularly awarded after ten years of schooling....

.