← Back to the rankingBertolt-Brecht-Gymnasium Dresden
Dresden, Germany · est. 1952 · State
Illustration · Dresden
Bertolt-Brecht-Gymnasium (BeBe) is a state Gymnasium of the city of Dresden for grades 5 to 12, tracing its history to 1952, when an extended secondary school preparing students for the leaving exam opened in Reick; it has carried Bertolt Brecht's name since 1971 with the consent of his widow Helene Weigel. The main programme is the Saxon Gymnasium curriculum in German with the Abitur after grade 12. Since 20 June 2011 the school has been authorised by the IB for the Diploma Programme: in grades 11-12 strong and motivated students take IB courses in English after regular lessons alongside the Abitur and earn two qualifications - the Abitur and the IB Diploma - or certificates in individual subjects; 415 students have graduated this way since 2013. Preparation comes from the school's own English Enrichment programme for grades 5-10 (once a week after school, about 250 participants, 19 teachers from around the world) and a bilingual profile in grades 8-10; the school also awards the CertiLingua language certificate and prepares for DELF. From the 2026-2027 school year an international grade 5 class taught in English has opened, and from grade 6 in 2027-2028 it is planned to follow the IB Middle Years Programme. After English the school offers Latin, Russian, French and Spanish. For more than 35% of students German is not their only native language; German as a second language is taught. Tuition is free.
Key facts
Programmes
IB · DP · National programme
Languages of instruction
German, English
Languages taught
French, Russian, Latin, Spanish
About the fees Tuition at this state Gymnasium is free. The IB Diploma Programme is funded by the city of Dresden and the State of Saxony as well as parental contributions and donations: participation costs about 200 EUR in grade 11 and about 400 EUR in grade 12, including examination fees. The parental contribution for English Enrichment is roughly 10 to 180 EUR per year depending on the grade. Lunch from gourmetta is paid separately; families receiving benefits can get lunch and trips covered through the Bildung und Teilhabe programme.
Admissions This is a state Gymnasium of Saxony: admission to grade 5 is by the primary school recommendation (Bildungsempfehlung) with an application signed by both parents, copies of the grade 3 and first-half grade 4 reports and the choice of a second foreign language. Students join grades 6-11 by an application explaining the change of school and their last report; the head decides subject to places. The IB language policy states that proficiency in German is required for admission to the school, as the state curriculum is taught in German; five German as a second language teachers support newcomers with other mother tongues. For the international grade 5 class taught in English (from 2026-2027) a birth certificate, an identity document, recent school reports and an application form are needed; it gives preference to children whose native language is not German and whose families live in Germany temporarily because of the parents' work. The IB Diploma Programme admits only students of the Gymnasium itself: it is open to all motivated students willing to take it alongside the Abitur; readiness is shown through English Enrichment and conversations with IB teachers and the coordinator, marks count but are not decisive; the head makes the final decision. Transfers from other Gymnasiums and students returning from an exchange year are accepted subject to places after an interview with the head.
Stages and year groups Grades 5-12. A Saxon Gymnasium, grades 5-12, the Saxon curriculum in German and the Abitur (Allgemeine Hochschulreife) after grade 12. English is the first foreign language; the second from grade 6 is Latin, Russian or French, and from grade 8 Spanish can be started as a third in the language profile. Profiles in grades 8-10: service learning, natural sciences, languages and bilingual English. English Enrichment in grades 5-10 - lessons in History, Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics and other subjects in English once a week; in grade 10 all students take Exploring IB. The IB Diploma Programme in grades 11-12 alongside the Abitur: six subjects (three at Higher Level), courses in German, English, French, Russian, History, Physics, Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics (Analysis and Approaches), Music and Visual Arts, plus Theory of Knowledge as an Abitur basic course, the Extended Essay in place of the Saxon Facharbeit and CAS; IB classes run after regular lessons, exams in May of grade 12; individual IB courses can also be taken. From 2026-2027 an international grade 5 class in English as a preparatory year, with the IB MYP planned from grade 6 (2027-2028) to grade 10. The school does not offer Cambridge International courses.
Accreditations and programmes verified against official registries
IB · DP · authorised programmeThe school is listed in the IB register and runs the Diploma Programme. The IB track runs inside a German Gymnasium: in the upper grades students take the IB Diploma alongside the Abitur.
school is in an official registryconfirmed by a school document, by membership or by taking part in a networkclaimed by the school, no confirmation, not counted in the scoreGuide to all organisations → What stands behind each entry
IBInternational Baccalaureate
A Swiss non-profit, working since 1968. Its programmes are among the most widely recognised school programmes in the world. Authorisation is granted stage by stage, so a school with the final stage does not necessarily run the younger ones; which stages this school holds is set out in the line below.
What the badge means for this school. The school is allowed to run this programme and to award its certificate. This is a confirmation of the programme, not a judgement on the school as a whole. The entry stands in the organisation's public register - anyone can check it. At this school: DP (ages 16-19). DP is the final stage, ages 16 to 19: six subjects plus a compulsory core of theory of knowledge, an extended essay and CAS. The diploma is accepted by universities all over the world, and in a number of countries it counts for admission on the same footing as the local leaving certificate.
Register to check for yourself, and the full guide →National programme
The state school programme of the country the school stands in: it is set by that country's ministry of education, which also licenses the school and awards the leaving certificate. That certificate is used for entry to local universities, and abroad it is matched to the local one.
What this means for this school. This entry does not count towards the score, and that is deliberate. Every lawful school in a country works to the national programme, so on its own it tells one school apart from no other - unlike the French, German or Russian programmes, which are carried abroad and confirmed by the register of their organisation. We show it because a parent needs to know what programme their child is taught and what certificate the child will get. Counting it would lift the whole ranking at once and still tell nobody apart.
Exams and destinations from the school's official website
Exam results IB 2026: 21 graduates earned the IB Diploma or certificates, 12 of them the full IB Diploma and 8 certificates in individual courses and CAS. 2025: 14 full diplomas and 24 certificates, three students scored over 30 points. 2024: 13 full diplomas and 15 certificates. Since 2013 the IB programme has had 415 graduates; the highest score named on the website is 36 points in 2019. The school does not publish an average score.
Facilities from the school's official website
·Swimming poolnot stated on the website
✓Sports hall
·Laboratoriesnot stated on the website
·Theatre or assembly hallnot stated on the website
✓Library
✓Catering
·School transportnot stated on the website
·Boardingnot stated on the website
Campus: The Gymnasium is temporarily housed at Terrassenufer 15 by the Elbe, with PE at Thomaestraße and nearby halls; the old building on Lortzingstraße is being demolished and the city is building a new school on the site, with the return planned for the 2030-2031 school year. The school library has about 12000 media, over 900 registered students and over 100 visitors a day, open on school days until 16:00. Lunch is supplied by gourmetta using mainly regional produce, and the dining rooms were recently renovated; there are student lockers. After classes there are clubs and all-day activities. There is no boarding.
Clubs and activities: English Film Club · Nachwuchschor (junior choir) · Schulchor (school choir) · Jugendchor BBC (youth choir) · Schulband (school band) · Instrumentalensemble (instrumental ensemble) · Nachwuchs-Theater AG (junior theatre group) · Theater II - Dramaroyals · Theatergruppe Oberstufe (senior theatre group) · Jugend debattiert (youth debating competition) · Schulsanitätsdienst (school first aid service) · Zukunftstechnologie bb-web (student web company) · GEO-Caching · Jahrbuch (yearbook) · AG Gestaltung (design) · Mal-RAUM (drawing) · BeBe-Imker (beekeeping) · Schach-AG (chess club) · Fußball-AG (football club) · Basketball (Titans) · Volleyball · Badminton
Teaching staff from the school's official website
·Teachers listed by namenot published
·Teacher qualificationsnot stated
·Number of teachersthe school does not say
·Students per teacher or class sizenot stated
English Enrichment is taught by 19 teachers from around the world, often native English speakers using alternative teaching methods; the school has five qualified German as a second language teachers. The website does not give the total number of teachers or their qualifications.
Safety and wellbeing from the school's official website
·CCTVnot stated on the website
·Security staffnot stated on the website
·Access controlnot stated on the website
·Nurse or medical roomnot stated on the website
✓Counsellor
✓Child protection policy
·Staff trainingnot stated on the website
·Anti-bullying policynot stated on the website
Three school social workers with degrees in education and social pedagogy, one of them a systemic family therapist, counsel students and parents in difficult situations and conflicts, support the transition to the Gymnasium and have introduced class councils in all grade 5 classes. Students run a school first aid service; the IB programme has conflict resolution, inclusion and academic integrity policies.
Reviews
No reviews yet. The community rating counts towards the score once a school has five verified reviews - until then we do not show a zero, so as not to mislead.
Criteria breakdown criterion weight in brackets
Academics and programmes (16%)82 Community rating (16%)no dataparent reviews are needed: the criterion switches on at the fifth verified one Exams and destinations (12%) scored on disclosed data80 Safety and wellbeing (12%) scored on disclosed data65 Accreditation and verifiability (10%)85 Teaching staff (10%) scored on disclosed data55 Facilities (10%) scored on disclosed data75 Clubs and activities (8%) scored on disclosed data78 "Scored on disclosed data" stands where we count only what the school has written about itself on its own site: exams and destinations, safety and wellbeing, teaching staff, facilities, clubs and activities. A low score here means the school does not write about this, not that the school does not have it: a school with good security and a sparse site will score low. A school can fill in its profile, and the score will be counted again.
The score is counted from 8 of the 9 criteria.Only those with checkable data count: programmes and accreditations from official registers, the fee from a published price list. Where it says "scored on the median", the school has no data and the middle of the list is put in its place, so that a gap gives no advantage. Admissions, teaching staff and reviews come in as their data arrives.
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