Requirements for appointment

Elementary education

The following actors are involved in the management of elementary schools:

• At national level, 15 regional directorates (directions de région), each of which made up of one head and 2-4 deputy heads, with following missions:
  • Administrative management and pedagogical monitoring of schools
  • Coordination of the schooling of pupils with special education needs
• At communal level, the municipal council and the municipal school commission
• At the schools' level,  the school committee and its president.

The regional directorates are nominated by the minister of Education.

The school committee is composed of 3-9 elected school staff members, 2/3 of which being civil servant teachers (instituteurs). Members of this committee have to be employed at the school at least on a half-time basis and for one full school year. The committee proposes one of its members as school committee president. The school president, who has to be an appointed teacher, is nominated by the Minister on the committee’s proposal. Apart from these conditions, no further requirements for appointment are specified.

In case there are no applicants for the school committee or the function of school president, the municipal council may nominate an officer (responsable d’école) who will stay in charge for one year, fulfilling the missions of the committee and/or the president.

Secondary education

The principal (directeur) and the vice-principal (directeur adjoint) are nominated by the Grand-Duke according to the terms and conditions applicable to the nomination of civil servants occupying executive functions in administrations and State departments. A specific training is considered to be an asset, though it is not mandatory.

The principal may be assisted by a management assistant (attaché à la direction). Management assistants are teachers allocated either partially or fully to support the school management or to help implement the secondary school’s autonomy scheme. The management assistant is nominated by the Minister as proposed by the principal, with a renewable tenure on an annual basis.

Conditions of service

Elementary education

Members of the school committee as well as the school committee president continue to work as elementary school teachers under the conditions described in article 9.1.

They benefit from a reduction of teaching hours. The total reduction of working time for a school's members of staff and president corresponds to 1/3 of the total teaching lessons of  staff working at least half-time for that school. The reduction is then distributed according to a scheme set by grand-ducal regulation.

Secondary education

The conditions of service of principals and vice-principals are subject to the regulations concerning civil servants occupying leading functions in State administrations and services. According to the applicable law, they are nominated for a renewable seven-year term. If their term is not renewed, they are appointed at the highest possible career position of the service they have been working for.

Principals have a working time of 40 hours per week, which they organise themselves according to the requirements of school management. During school holidays, teachers are free to organise their holidays in accordance with their tasks. In the course of the school year, a ministerial authorisation is required.

In the school year 2018/19, the annual gross salaries for full-time qualified school heads lay between a minimum of € 105 579 and a maximum of € 146 013. (source: EACEA/Eurydice, 2020. Teachers' and School Heads' Salaries andAllowances in Europe – 2018/19. Eurydice Facts and Figures)