Parents

Gymnasium is vwo with Latin and Greek
In the last year of elementary school, your child gets a school advice: vmbo, havo, or vwo. Children with a vwo-advice may choose between gymnasium (vwo with Latin and Greek) or atheneum (vwo without Latin and Greek). These two schooltypes lead to a different diploma. This website informs you and your child about the schooltype gymnasium. 

Difference between independent gymnasium and gymnasium department
There are two different types of schools your child can attend: independent gymnasia and comprehensive schools with a gymnasium department. Below is more information on the differences between the two types of schools.
 
Independent gymnasium
An independent gymnasium is a school that offers only a gymnasium programme. They are also called categorical gymnasiums. It all means the same thing: everyone at that school only does gymnasium, so no VMBO, havo or atheneum (vwo without Latin and Greek), and all pupils receive at least one of the classical languages from the first class onwards. Independent gymnasiums are often, but not always, smaller schools, offering a safe environment of like-minded students, where your child is allowed to be curious and smart. Because all students take Latin and Greek, Greek and Latin classes at an independent grammar school are often larger than at a grammar school department. Gymnasiums like to support their pupils to persevere even when things do not go well right away, so that they can stay at the same school. There are relatively few pupils who have to transfer schools (although this does of course happen, if things really don't work out). 
 
Gymnasium department
A gymnasium department is part of a comprehensive school. So within the same school, you can do gymnasium, atheneum, havo and often also mavo. This means that your child could stay at the same school if (s)he does not like the gymnasium. At some comprehensive schools, the pupil can only start in grade 2 or 3 with Latin and Greek. 

In a gymnasium department, we often see smaller classes for the subjects Latin and Greek, because only gymnasium students take those subjects. Another difference with an independent gymnasium is that pupils sometimes get fewer hours of Latin or Greek than at an independent gymnasium, or that these hours are timetabled instead of other languages.

Same diploma
Whether your child attends an independent gymnasium or a gymnasium department within a comprehensive school, he or she will take Greek and Latin in the first three years and take final exams in one or both classical languages after six years, thus receiving the same gymnasium diploma.
 
Of course, every school is different. So be sure to visit open days of independent gymnasiums and gymnasium departments in your area together to find a school where your child feels at home.