SEE Subjects List: Compulsory, Optional, Marks and Grading

The Secondary Education Examination (SEE) is Nepal's national school-leaving assessment, sat at the end of Grade 10 (Class 10) and administered by the National Examination Board (NEB) with the provincial education directorates. It is built directly on the Curriculum Development Centre (CDC) Secondary Education Curriculum 2078 BS (2021 AD), which covers Grades 9 and 10 together. Under this curriculum, a student in the general (academic) stream studies eight subjects: five compulsory (core) subjects that everyone must take, plus two optional (elective) subjects chosen from a CDC-approved list.

Each SEE subject carries 100 full marks. For most subjects the 100 marks are split into a 75-mark external theory paper set and marked under NEB, and a 25-mark internal assessment or practical component conducted by the school over the academic year. Because there are typically eight subjects at 100 marks each, the SEE covers roughly 800 marks in total, though results are not published as a percentage or division. Instead, marks are converted to letter grades and a Grade Point Average (GPA) on a 4.0 scale, a system in place for the SEE since the 2073 BS (2016 AD) examinations.

This page brings together the subject-by-subject facts students most often search for: the full SEE subjects list, which subjects are compulsory versus optional, the marks division into theory and practical or internal parts, the CDC credit-hour weighting, and the letter-grade bands used to report results.

The five compulsory subjects under the 2078 curriculum are Nepali, English, Mathematics, Science and Technology, and Social Studies. Each is worth 100 marks and, in the standard model, is divided into 75 marks of externally examined theory and 25 marks of internal assessment or practical work marked at the school. This is the answer to common queries such as the SEE Nepali marks division and the SEE Science full marks: for Nepali, English, Mathematics, Science and Technology and Social Studies alike, the headline figure is 100 marks, made up of a 75-mark theory paper plus a 25-mark internal or practical portion.

The internal or practical 25 marks are not a single test. They are built up through the year from classwork, project work, terminal (unit) tests, participation and, in Science and Technology, laboratory practical work. The theory paper of 75 marks is the three-hour written examination that most people picture when they think of the SEE. Because Science and Technology absorbs a practical element, its 25 internal marks emphasise experiments and lab records, whereas language and social subjects weight the internal marks toward project work and continuous assessment.

To pass a subject a candidate generally needs at least the minimum grade in both parts: a grade D (35 percent) or above in the theory component and a grade C (about 40 percent) or above in the internal component, in line with the national letter-grading directive. Failing to reach the minimum in either part leaves the subject 'Not Graded' (NG), which must then be cleared through a grade-increment examination before moving on to Grade 11.

Many older SEE subject lists and legacy syllabuses name six compulsory subjects, including a standalone Health, Population and Environment subject (often written HPE or EPH). Under that earlier structure the compulsory set was Nepali, English, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies and Health-Population-Environment, plus two optional subjects. This six-compulsory list is still widely quoted online, which is why the SEE compulsory subjects list can appear to differ between sources.

The 2078 curriculum restructured this. Health, Population and Environment is no longer a separate externally examined compulsory SEE subject in the general stream. Its content was redistributed: population and social dimensions moved into Social Studies, while health, environment and related science moved into Science and Technology. Physical, health and arts learning is delivered through a Health, Physical and Creative Arts subject that is assessed largely internally rather than through a full 75-mark NEB theory paper.

For a student sitting the SEE today, the practical takeaway is simple. The five externally examined compulsory subjects are Nepali, English, Mathematics, Science and Technology and Social Studies. If a source lists Health, Population and Environment as a sixth compulsory paper, it is describing the pre-2078 model; the topics still exist, but they are now embedded within Social Studies and Science and Technology rather than examined on their own.

Alongside the compulsory core, every SEE candidate takes two optional subjects. The CDC maintains a list of around fifteen approved optional subjects, and schools offer a subset of these depending on their teachers and facilities. Popular choices include Optional Mathematics, Computer Science, Accountancy and Economics, and the curriculum requires that at least one of the two optional subjects be skill or vocationally oriented in many settings. Optional subjects follow the same 100-mark design as the core, generally 75 marks of theory plus 25 marks of internal or practical assessment.

Optional Mathematics (commonly searched as SEE optional math) is a favourite for students planning science or engineering pathways; its SEE theory paper is set for 75 marks, with the remaining 25 marks internal. Computer Science carries a strong practical weighting, so its 25 internal or practical marks reward hands-on lab work and projects. Accountancy and Economics are management-oriented options that lean more heavily on written theory, making them common picks for students who intend to study management in Grades 11 and 12.

Because the two optional slots count toward the same eight-subject total and the same GPA, a student's optional choices shape both their overall grade point average and their readiness for a chosen Grade 11 stream. It is worth checking which options a school actually runs, since the full CDC list is broader than any single school teaches.

The CDC expresses the weight of each subject in credit hours as well as in marks. In the secondary framework one credit hour corresponds to 32 annual working (teaching) hours, so a subject's credit-hour value indicates how much timetable time it is meant to receive across the school year. Compulsory English, for example, is allocated five credit hours, equivalent to 160 annual working hours, reflecting the emphasis the curriculum places on language competence.

In general, the compulsory subjects at the secondary level carry roughly four to five credit hours each (about 128 to 160 annual working hours), and each optional subject is similarly weighted so that a full eight-subject load fills the school year. The exact figure for every individual subject is fixed in that subject's own CDC curriculum document rather than in a single master table, so students needing the precise number for a particular paper should consult the relevant subject curriculum on the CDC (moecdc.gov.np) portal.

Credit hours do not change how the SEE is marked, subjects remain 100 marks each, but they explain why some subjects receive more class periods than others and how the curriculum balances a student's study time within a credit-based structure that continues into Grades 11 and 12 under the NEB.

SEE results are reported entirely through letter grades and a GPA on a 4.0 scale, following the national Letter Grading Directive. There is no first, second or third division and no published percentage; each subject earns a letter grade, and the average of the subject grade points gives the overall GPA. The grade for a subject is derived by combining the theory and internal or practical marks and mapping the achievement to the grade band below.

The current bands are: A+ for 90 percent and above (grade point 4.0, Outstanding); A for 80 to below 90 (3.6, Excellent); B+ for 70 to below 80 (3.2, Very Good); B for 60 to below 70 (2.8, Good); C+ for 50 to below 60 (2.4, Satisfactory); C for 40 to below 50 (2.0, Acceptable); and D for 35 to below 40 (1.6, Basic). Anything below 35 percent is graded NG (Not Graded), which carries no grade point and must be cleared. The D band and the NG label were confirmed in the revised directive, replacing the earlier practice of an 'E' grade for the lowest tier.

To secure a full SEE certificate, a candidate must reach at least the minimum grade in every subject, typically grade D (35 percent) in the theory component and grade C (about 40 percent) in the internal component, and an overall passing GPA. Students who fall short in up to two subjects can sit grade-increment (chance) examinations, which the board allows a limited number of times, before the original certificate is issued.

The SEE is conducted at the end of Grade 10, usually in the month of Chaitra (March to April), and is coordinated by the National Examination Board with the seven provincial education development directorates now handling much of the Grade 10 examination process. The question papers, mark schemes and internal-assessment rules all derive from the CDC Secondary Education Curriculum 2078 BS (2021 AD), which is the authoritative reference for what each subject contains and how it is weighted.

Because the SEE draws on a single curriculum framework, the subject-wise facts, marks split, credit hours and grade bands, are consistent across schools nationwide, even though the two optional subjects on offer vary from school to school. For the definitive text, refer to the individual subject curricula and the letter-grading directive on the CDC portal (moecdc.gov.np) and the NEB (neb.gov.np).

In short, the SEE subjects list is stable and predictable: five externally examined compulsory subjects, two optional subjects, 100 marks each in a 75 theory and 25 internal or practical split, weighted in CDC credit hours, and reported in letter grades on a 4.0 GPA scale. Knowing this structure helps a candidate plan revision, choose optional subjects wisely, and understand how each grade on the final grade sheet is produced.