The Probatoire in Cameroon: the exam that opens the door to Terminale
The Probatoire is the national examination taken at the end of Première in the French-speaking subsystem. It is not a mock exam: it is a qualification in its own right, between the BEPC and the Baccalauréat, and passing it is required to enter Terminale. It is run by the Cameroon Baccalaureate Office (OBC). France dropped this stage in 1965, which makes it a distinctive feature of the Cameroonian system.
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At a glance
- Class
- Première (penultimate year of secondary school)
- Organiser
- Cameroon Baccalaureate Office (OBC), under MINESEC
- 2026 series (general)
- A, ABI, AC, SH, C, D, E, TI
- 2026 session
- Written 8 to 12 June; results on 29 July
- Candidates, 2026
- 177,423 registered, 561 sub-centres
- Pass rate, 2026
- 43.24% (general Probatoire)
- Pass mark
- 10/20 average (rule restated in 2025)
- Next step
- Terminale, then the Baccalauréat
A sieve before Terminale
The Probatoire is often described as a sieve that checks pupils' level before the final year. Failing it normally means repeating Première. Its status carries weight even abroad: according to Le360 Afrique, since February 2025 Chad has required Cameroonian candidates for the Chadian Baccalauréat to show their Probatoire, because some pupils who failed in Cameroon were sitting the Bac in Chad or the Central African Republic.
In France, the Baccalauréat was in two parts until 1963; the first part was replaced by a Probatoire exam that lasted only two sessions (1963 and 1964) before being abolished in 1965. Cameroon kept this stage.
The series
In 2026, the general-education Probatoire covered series A, ABI, AC, SH, C, D, E and TI, according to Cameroon Tribune. Series A has been subdivided since a reform announced in August 2018: A1 (letters, Latin, Greek), A2 (letters, Latin, second foreign language), A3 (letters, Latin), A4 (letters, second foreign language), A5 (letters, second and third foreign languages). The same reform created, from 2019, a cinematic arts series and a human sciences series, which almost certainly correspond to the abbreviations AC and SH.
The science series C (mathematics and physical sciences) and D (life and earth sciences, mathematics) are the best known; series E is also scientific and TI stands for information technology. Technical education has its own Probatoires (industrial, commercial, technician's certificate), covered in the technical education page.
Papers, marking and passing
The general Probatoire is a written exam held over one week. The OBC publishes the timetable, durations and coefficients for each series every year (as it did for the session of 9 to 13 June 2025), but that document is not available online, so the Probatoire coefficients are not reproduced here.
According to a joint OBC-DECC statement reported by Journal du Cameroun in February 2025, passing requires a general average of 10/20 and, for the Probatoire and the Baccalauréat, a mark of at least 10 in every subject of the 'first group' (the main subjects of the series).
The 2026 session
| Session | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Written papers | 9 to 13 June | 8 to 12 June |
| Registered candidates | Nearly 189,000 | 177,423 |
| Sub-centres | Not found | 561 |
| Results | 31 July | Wednesday 29 July |
| Pass rate | Under 45% (about 73,000 passed) | 43.24% |
In 2026, results were published six weeks after the written papers and could be checked by text message to 8070, on the obcexams.mtn.cm platform, at schools and on CRTV radio, according to Journal du Cameroun. The national pass rate for the general Probatoire was 43.24%, against under 45% in 2025 (about 73,000 passes out of nearly 189,000 candidates, according to Season Media); detailed results are covered in the dedicated page.
Frequently asked questions
Can you go into Terminale without the Probatoire in Cameroon?
No: in the French-speaking subsystem, entry into Terminale depends on passing the Probatoire.
Who organises the Probatoire?
The Cameroon Baccalaureate Office (OBC), a public body under the Ministry of Secondary Education.
When was the 2026 Probatoire?
The general Probatoire written papers ran from 8 to 12 June 2026, with 177,423 registered candidates; results came out on 29 July 2026.
How do I check my Probatoire results?
In 2026: by text message to 8070 with your candidate number, on obcexams.mtn.cm, at your school or on CRTV radio.
Does the Probatoire exist in France?
Not since 1965. It existed for only two sessions, in 1963 and 1964, replacing the first part of the Bac.
Handle with care
The match between the abbreviations AC and SH and the cinematic arts and human sciences series created in 2019 is inferred from a 2018 article; no official document confirmed it. A figure of 163,660 Probatoire candidates circulates (Cameroun24), but the article cannot be reliably dated, so it is not used. Coefficients are not published online. For 2025 only an order of magnitude is available (Season Media), not a precise official rate.