Definition of Higher secondary (school) certificate

The Higher Secondary School Certificate, also known as HSSC, is a public examination taken by students in Bangladesh, Pakistan and in the states of Gujarat, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, Maharashtra and Goa in India after successfully completing at least twelve years of schooling, that is two years after doing Secondary School Certificate (SSC). The examination structure differs from board to board. But in the most of the boards, they are subjective examinations. HSC is an equivalent to GCE A Level in England and AP and GED in the United States.