Exams and bac
The first-year bac regional exam in Morocco: what it is and how to prepare
The regional exam counts for 25% of the bac grade and cannot be resat to improve it. Subjects, coefficients, method per subject and a concrete revision plan.
The first-year bac regional exam (examen régional unifié) is the written exam every student sits at the end of the first year of the Moroccan baccalauréat, in the subjects that will not come up again in the national exam. In the science streams it covers French, Arabic, Islamic education and history-geography, and its average counts for 25% of the final bac grade. Each regional academy (AREF) runs its own exam: for a lycée student in Tiznit, the papers are set by the AREF Souss-Massa.
In other words, a quarter of the bac is decided a year before the bac itself. Here is how the exam works, what it really weighs and how to prepare for it, subject by subject.
What is the unified regional exam?
In Morocco, the bac grade is built over two years. It combines three marks: continuous assessment in second-year bac (25%), the first-year regional exam (25%) and the second-year national exam (50%).
It is called "unified" because every student in the same academy sits the same paper on the same day. Each AREF writes its papers from reference frameworks published by the Ministry of Education, and runs the exam centres and the marking. So a student in Tiznit sits the same paper as a student in Agadir or Taroudant in the same stream.
The exams take place over two days, in late May or early June depending on the year. The exact timetable is set each year by the ministry: check it on the Ministry of National Education website (in French and Arabic) and with your school. Do not confuse it with the regional exam at the end of collège (third year): same name, different level.
Regional exam 1st year bac: which subjects for which stream?
The regional exam covers the subjects that will not be examined in the national exam. For students enrolled in a school, the most common breakdown is as follows.
| Stream | Regional subjects | Coefficients (guide) |
|---|---|---|
| Experimental sciences, maths sciences | French, Arabic, Islamic education, history-geography | 4, 2, 2, 2 |
| Economics and management | French, history-geography, Arabic, Islamic education | 3, 3, 2, 2 |
| Science and technology | French, Arabic, Islamic education | 4, 2, 2 |
| Arts and humanities | French, Islamic education, mathematics | Check with your school |
Independent candidates (candidats libres) sometimes sit extra subjects, and the vocational, applied arts and traditional (originel) streams have their own lists: your school and your exam notice are the final word.
The regional average is a weighted average: each mark is multiplied by its coefficient, then the total is divided by the sum of the coefficients. Take a student in experimental sciences with 12 in French, 14 in Arabic, 15 in Islamic education and 13 in history-geography: (12×4 + 14×2 + 15×2 + 13×2) ÷ 10 = 13.2 out of 20.
Why the regional exam matters more than students think
Many students see these subjects as "minor" and put everything into maths or physics. That is a poor calculation, for three reasons.
- It is a quarter of the bac. With 13.2 in the regional exam, the student in our example already brings 3.3 points out of 20 to the final average before starting second year.
- It cannot be resat. The regional resit session is for candidates who missed the main session for an accepted reason (documented illness, force majeure). It does not exist to improve a mark: a poor regional result stays in the calculation.
- It also counts for selection. Several selective institutions (public engineering schools and medical faculties, for example) calculate their shortlisting score from the national and regional marks, often at 75% and 25%. The exact rules are in each competition's notice on cursussup.gov.ma.
In the science streams, French has twice the coefficient of the other regional subjects. Going from 12 to 16 in French adds 1.6 points to the regional average on its own. It is often the most profitable lever of the whole year.
Preparing French: the set texts and the written production
According to the ministry's reference framework, the French paper lasts 2 hours and is marked out of 20: a text study worth 10 points, then a written production worth 10 points. The text is an extract from one of the three works on the first-year syllabus:
- La Boîte à merveilles by Ahmed Sefrioui, an autobiographical novel about a childhood in Fez
- Le Dernier Jour d'un condamné by Victor Hugo, a novel arguing against the death penalty
- Antigone by Jean Anouilh, a modern tragedy about duty, law and freedom
The text study
The questions follow a stable order: place the passage in the work, understand it (who is speaking, to whom, in what situation), analyse it (figures of speech, lexical fields, tone, point of view), then react with a reasoned opinion. To place an extract in two lines, you need to know the book from the inside. An online summary is not enough.
What works: one revision sheet per chapter (per key moment of the play for Antigone) with the events, the characters, two or three short quotations and the themes. Add a sheet of literary devices with one example from each work: simile, metaphor, antithesis, gradation, hyperbole.
The written production
The topic is usually argumentative and linked to a theme of the works: justice, the death penalty, childhood, the place of women, duty versus freedom. Examiners expect an introduction that sets out the question, two or three arguments backed by examples, and a conclusion. Practise making a plan in 10 minutes and writing in 35 minutes, and keep 5 minutes to check spelling and agreements.
Arabic, history-geography, Islamic education: the right method
Arabic
The paper is built around a text, with questions on comprehension, analysis and language, modelled on the texts studied in class. The right reflex is the same as in French: place the text, identify its ideas and devices, then write structured answers. Check the year's reference framework for the detailed marking scheme.
History-geography
Papers usually combine knowledge questions (definitions, dates, concepts) with document analysis: texts, maps, graphs, statistical tables. Many students learn the course by heart and then lose their marks on the documents.
For a document: read the source and the date, pick out precise information (figures, names, places), explain it with the course, then conclude in one sentence. For the course itself, one sheet per lesson with the key definitions and dates is often enough.
Islamic education
The paper usually opens with a situation, followed by documents (Qur'anic verses, hadiths, texts) and questions on comprehension and then application. Marks are lost on vague answers that ignore the documents, and on verses quoted inaccurately when the paper asks you to write them from memory. Recite aloud, write from memory, correct.
Maths in the arts and humanities stream
In arts and humanities, maths is a regional subject. These are marks within reach with steady work: redo the standard exercises from the year rather than hunting for hard papers.
A realistic revision plan, week by week
The three phases of the year
- October to January: read the three works in full, build your sheets as the lessons go, keep your history-geography and Islamic education notes up to date.
- February to March: one past regional paper every two weeks in each subject, marked against the official scheme.
- The last six weeks: the typical week below, on top of your classes.
A typical week for the last six weeks
| Day | Subject | Exercise | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | French | Text study from a past paper | 1 h |
| Tuesday | History-geography | Revision sheets + one document | 1 h |
| Wednesday | Arabic | One text analysed in writing | 1 h |
| Thursday | Islamic education | Verses from memory + one situation | 45 min |
| Friday | French | Full written production | 1 h |
| Saturday | Weakest subject | Full timed paper | 2 h |
| Sunday | All | Corrections and error log | 1 h |
Adapt the grid to your stream: in science and technology, replace the history-geography session with French; in arts and humanities, with maths. And do not drop your main subjects: maths, physics-chemistry and life and earth sciences come back in the national bac exam the following year.
Working with AREF Souss-Massa past papers
Past papers from the Souss-Massa academy are the best practice material you can get: they show the style of questions and the level expected in the region. Ask your teachers for them, as they often have the answer keys and marking schemes, then add papers from other academies, which are built on the same frameworks.
Do them under real conditions: timer on, no phone, no notes. Testing yourself is also the most effective way to memorise: Roediger and Karpicke (2006) showed that practising recalling a text helps long-term retention more than rereading it. There are more ideas in our article on effective study methods.
Mistakes that cost marks
- Starting regional revision in May.
- Reading summaries instead of the works.
- Rushing the written production, even though it is worth 10 points.
- Learning history-geography by heart without ever analysing a document.
- Arriving on the day without ever having written a paper against the clock.
Do you need extra support for the regional exam?
Not necessarily. A regular student who reads the set texts and works through past papers with their teachers can prepare perfectly well alone. Support becomes useful when French marks stall or when the student cannot organise their work.
In Tiznit, ApexTiz's academic support programme offers intensive preparation for regional exams, with past papers worked under near-exam conditions, in groups of at most 15 students or one-to-one, on site or remotely. It starts with a placement test, and parents receive regular progress reports. To choose between the two formats, see our comparison of private tutoring and small groups.
Frequently asked questions
Which subjects are in the 1st year bac regional exam?
It depends on the stream. In experimental sciences and maths sciences: French, Arabic, Islamic education and history-geography. In arts and humanities: French, Islamic education and maths. Check the exact list on your exam notice.
How much does the regional exam count in the bac?
25% of the final grade, the same as second-year continuous assessment. The national exam counts for the remaining 50%.
Can you resit the regional exam to improve your mark?
No. The regional resit session is for candidates who missed the main session for an accepted reason, such as documented illness. For special cases (repeating a year, independent candidates), ask your school or the provincial education directorate.
When is the regional exam held?
In late May or early June depending on the year, over two days. The ministry publishes the exact dates each year.
Which books do you need to read for the French regional exam?
La Boîte à merveilles by Ahmed Sefrioui, Le Dernier Jour d'un condamné by Victor Hugo and Antigone by Jean Anouilh, according to the current reference framework. Read them in full, not just in summary.
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