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A Mechina (Hebrew: מכינה; "preparatory") is an Israeli educational institution for post-secondary youth, aimed at preparing them either for their army or national service, or for entrance to an institution of higher education in Israel. The duration of a mechina is generally one academic year.

Contents 1 Pre-Army Mechinot 1.1 Religious Pre-Army Mechina 1.2 Secular Pre-Army Mechina 1.3 Joint Religious and Secular Pre-Army Mechina 2 College preparatory programs 2.1 Academic mechinot 2.1.1 External links (Academic mechinot) 2.2 Mechinat Olim 2.2.1 External links (Mechinot Olim) 2.3 Remedial courses preparatory to higher education 3 Links

There are three types of pre-army mechinot (Hebrew for plural of mechina):

• Religious
• Secular
• Joint Religious and Secular

A religious mechina is intended for graduates of a Yeshiva high school, and prepares them for their service in the Israel Defense Forces. Focus is placed on preparing them for the encounter with secular society in the army by studying Jewish thought, beliefs and outlooks. Students also prepare physically for their service period and receive leadership training from active-duty officers.

The first religious mechina, Bnei David, was founded in 1988 in Eli.

Other religious mechinot:

• Amit
• Arzei Halevanon
• Beit Yatir
• Chemdat Yehuda
• Karmei Chayil [1]
• Keshet Yehuda
• Otzem
• Beit Rimon

A secular mechina focuses on preparing high school graduates for their service period. Focus is placed on teaching leadership, democracy, volunteerism, identity, zionism, Judaism, philosophy, and more. There is greater weight placed on learning Jewish history and heritage.

The first secular mechina was Nachshon, founded in 1997 in Nili.

Other secular mechinot:

• Meitzar
• Upper Galil
• Oranim
• Hanegev

The joint religious and secular mechinot were founded to help bridge the widening gaps in Israeli society. As such, they focus on teaching a range of subjects to a mixed student body, including Zionism, leadership, Judaism, political science, philosophy, alongside intensive community and societal involvement and volunteering.

Joint religious and secular mechinot:

• Aderet
• Amichai
• Beit Yisrael
• Ein Prat Leadership Academy
• the Progressive (i.e. Reform) Judaism Mechina in Yafo

Several frameworks operate in Israel to prepare for entrance to institutions of higher (post-secondary) education, those students who otherwise lack the necessary academic qualifications. These are geared for various populations.

These are operated by Israeli universities, for students with an Israeli high school education.

• the Mechina of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
• the Mechina of the Technion

A Mechinat Olim (Hebrew: מכינת עולים; immigrants' preparatory) is designed specifically for prospective, new, or recent immigrants intending to study in an Israeli institution of higher education. The programs are generally conducted for one year, and all courses are taught in Hebrew. The program has two basic goals:

• to raise the student's level of Hebrew, including those who started with no prior knowledge of the language, suitable for enrolling in post-secondary academic coursework
• acquainting the student with academic material as taught in the Hebrew language, including subjects from the Israeli curriculum such as Civics and Jewish History

The Mechinot Olim offer different content-based tracks of study (i.e. Life Science, Humanities, Social Sciences, or Physicial Science). The Technion will only accept students from its own Mechina.

• the Mechina for immigrants of the Technion
• the Mechina of Tel Aviv University

In addition to the above, there are private (i.e. commercial) educational institutions in Israel offering remedial courses for students after high school who wish to complete or upgrade their scores in their subject matriculations or prepare for the psychometric examinations required for entrance to college or university.

• Classes on the weekly torah portion at Ein Prat
• Classes on holidays given at Oranim.