Frequently asked questions

Early Childhood Centre and Elementary School:
08:45 - 15:30 (Preschool and Pre-K 1520)

Middle School and High School:
08:40 - 15:40

The start date for any student is always a case-by-case decision by the Head of Division. In theory, your child can begin school as soon as the admissions process is completed and a place has been offered. Practically speaking, however, a student will not usually enter ECC, ES or MS after May 1. High School students are not usually accepted after the beginning of the second but each application is looked at on a case-by-case basis. The Admissions office will contact you with the specific starting date.  

IB Diploma students: If the student is not already enrolled in IB courses that are transferable to ISB, it is not possible to begin after the beginning of October.

Grade level placement in the Early Childhood Centre is based on the cut-off date of November 1st. In the ES, MS and HS, placement is determined by both the previous educational experience and age of the student. In some cases, a placement test may be given to accurately place a student.

Some parents drive their children to school themselves. Most of our students, however, use our comprehensive school bus service.

Yes, when necessary. As with many international schools around the world, demand can fluctuate and is often high. This means that, at the time you apply, our classes may be full. In these cases, we open a waiting list for the class concerned. A member of our Admissions team will be happy to explain to you how we operate our waiting list at ISB.

We are able to offer a small number of assisted places each year, subject to specific criteria.

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The application fee is a non-refundable payment that enables us to cover the administrative costs of the application process. However, the fee is refunded in the following circumstances: 1) when a student is placed on a 'waiting list' for more than 60 days and subsequently forced to attend an alternative school; 2) when a student application is not accepted; 3) when an application for financial assistance is turned down and an application is subsequently withdrawn. Applications will not be processed until the full application fee has been paid.

Once we have all the necessary documentation that we ask for in our admissions procedure, we are normally able to let you have the decision within one week. In July and early August, or if your child is receiving Learning Support, this can sometimes take a little longer.

ISB has a wide range of learning support available. The sooner you can let us have all the relevant information about your child, the sooner we will be able to say whether we can offer an appropriate programme. In most cases, we can but places are limited.

We have a comprehensive English Language Development (ELD) programme, which will concentrate on "survival English" for the early days at ISB. Many of our children do not speak English when they arrive and our teachers and our other students are skilled in making them feel at home.