SAT Test Centers and Dates in Venezuela; www.collegeboard.org

More about Venezuela

• USAERS: Modern history of Venezuela from World War I to today, covering all major events on politics, economy, society, and technology.

National symbols

The national flag was introduced in 1811 and later changed several times; the current form has been in effect since March 2006. It is horizontally striped yellow over blue over red. Eight five-pointed stars are arranged in a semicircle on the blue stripe. The national flag also bears the national coat of arms in the Obereck.

The coat of arms dates back to 1836; its current form has also been in effect since March 2006. In the half-split shield, divided by an arch line, there is a golden sheaf of wheat ears (symbol for the states) in the first red field and a trophy made of crossed national flags and swords (for the struggle for independence) in the second yellow field. In the lower blue half of the shield, a white stallion (symbol of freedom) gallops to the heraldic right. The upper coat of arms is formed by two crossed horns of plenty. The shield is surrounded by a laurel branch and a palm branch. Below the shield there is a three-fold ribbon holding the branches together in the national colors with the inscription »19 de Abril de 1810 Independencia; 20 de Febrero de 1859 Federación; República Bolivariana de Venezuela «(on April 19

The national holiday is July 5th. It commemorates the declaration of independence in 1811. Check cellphoneexplorer to see South America Travel Guide.

Education

There is general compulsory schooling between the ages of 6 and 15. The first stage is the one-year compulsory pre-school. The mandatory basic education that builds on this lasts 9 years and leads to the Certificado de Educación Básica. The secondary level can then be attended: either the two-year general education or the three-year vocational secondary school. Attending school in state schools is free of charge. The dropout rates in basic education are relatively high; the model of the all-day school (Escuela Bolivariana) in connection with school meals tries to counteract this. In addition to numerous state and private universities, there is the Universidad Nacional Abierta, which offers distance learning. The oldest university (Universidad Central de Venezuela, Caracas) was founded in 1725.

Media

The state tries to increase its influence, especially through the radio, and to eliminate opposition media by economic and legal means. In a politically heated climate, journalists are under great pressure. A specialty are official government interruptions of radio broadcasts (cadenas).

Press:Compared to radio and television, the print media play a subordinate role. Of the around 60 daily newspapers, the largest are published in Caracas, including El Universal (founded in 1909, with English-language pages), El Nacional (founded 1943), Ultimas Notícias (founded 1941) and the evening paper “Tal Cual” (founded in 2000). “Diario VEA” (founded in 2003) and “Correo del Orinoco” (founded in 2009) are government journals. “Panorama” (founded in 1914) and “La Verdad” (founded in 1998) are published in Maracaibo, “El Carabobeño” (founded in 1933) in Valencia and “El Tiempo” (founded in 1958) in Puerto La Cruz.

News agency:“Agencia Venezolana de Noticias” (AVN, state).

Broadcasting:Most of the around 800 radio stations are commercial or public local broadcasters. The state “Radio Nacional de Venezuela” (RNV, founded in 1936) operates four stations. The state and government also control other broadcasters via “Venezolana de Televisión” (VTV), e. B. “ViVe”, “Tves” and “Telesur”, a broadcaster of Latin American countries friendly with Venezuela. The largest private television stations are “Venevisión”, “Televen” and “Globovisión” (news channel).