St John Marys International School Saraburi

[mca]

Can anybody give me any feedback whatsoever regarding this school in Saraburi? Do they offer the international A level for M5 and M6? What are the boarding facilities/school facilities like?

Thanks

[dvdlock]

Hi mca

I'm not familiar with the International A level for M5 & M6 but what I can tell you is that school follows the Californian Curriculum and graduates from the school have the correct certification to enter any university globally. Only English is spoken at the school unless during the couple of hours per week of compulsary Thai lessons.

There is a student interview and screening test as part of the admission process. There are boarding facilities on-site with several of the foreign teachers living at the school in separate housing, who also help with boarder supervision.

Kindergarten, elementary, middle and high school are in separate buildings. Each building has like an indoor basketball/sports hall with the classrooms, computer labs etc. around them.

The school has a huge Auditorium equipped with professional sound systems etc. There is also a large swimming pool.

The school master plan includes the inclusion of a University on the same site at some future point, the site is extensive.

The school is equipped with modern teaching aids like interactive white boards, there's an extensive library.

There is also a full student canteen which a full range of international foods are available. It's operated with a cash card system which is topped up periodically at the cashier. This discourages students from carrying cash at school.

There is a whole host of extra curricular activities and regular school outings.

The admin staff in the 'white house' (admin office/reception) on the left just inside the school gates are extremely helpful and a quick telephone call is all that is needed to arrange a visit.

There is transportation laid on for students. This ranges from those large modern coaches to a fleet of mini buses. Coaches pick up from various location as far as Bangkok and up to Pak Chong, not sure how far east/west. The mini buses make the more local pick-ups and is literally a door to door service. Cost varies but minibus for the local area starts at around Baht 8,000 per term.

All the above is based on my personal recent experience. Our daughter is 9-years old and will start at SJMIS at the beginning of the next semester which is 17th January.

We have only been in Thailand about 5-weeks or so and originally wanted to settle in/around Korat. However, with schools with a proper 'English Program' being next to impossible to find outside of Bangkok we decided to settle in Saraburi purely because of this school.

Hope you find this helpful.

Cheers.

[AmeriThai]

All the above is based on my personal recent experience. Our daughter is 9-years old and will start at SJMIS at the beginning of the next semester which is 17th January.

We have only been in Thailand about 5-weeks or so and originally wanted to settle in/around Korat. However, with schools with a proper 'English Program' being next to impossible to find outside of Bangkok we decided to settle in Saraburi purely because of this school.

Glad to hear you've decided on where to send your daughter for school. Your post above is very descriptive and helpful.

[dvdlock]

All the above is based on my personal recent experience. Our daughter is 9-years old and will start at SJMIS at the beginning of the next semester which is 17th January.

We have only been in Thailand about 5-weeks or so and originally wanted to settle in/around Korat. However, with schools with a proper 'English Program' being next to impossible to find outside of Bangkok we decided to settle in Saraburi purely because of this school.

Glad to hear you've decided on where to send your daughter for school. Your post above is very descriptive and helpful.

Hi AmeriThai,

Hope you are well.

As you can gather we are now well and truly on the ground here in Thailand. We've been here 5 or 6-weeks now most of which has been spent travelling around to get a feel for Central Thailand and as you know, find a school.

Thanks to information from TV and from your good self we were able to put a plan together in preparation for our search. We looked around Korat and visited a few schools but wasn't overly impressed. Next stop was Saraburi and once we visited SJMIS we made a decision and the rest of the plan went out of the window.

Found a house on the Saraburi bu-pass which is about 10 - 15-minutes from school and now just waiting on the arrival of our container so we can get moved in and settled.

Many thanks for your advice previously, it made a world of difference.

Cheers.

[mca]

Great info dvdlock. Thanks a lot.

[AmeriThai]

Hi AmeriThai,

Hope you are well.

As you can gather we are now well and truly on the ground here in Thailand. We've been here 5 or 6-weeks now most of which has been spent travelling around to get a feel for Central Thailand and as you know, find a school.

Thanks to information from TV and from your good self we were able to put a plan together in preparation for our search. We looked around Korat and visited a few schools but wasn't overly impressed. Next stop was Saraburi and once we visited SJMIS we made a decision and the rest of the plan went out of the window.

Found a house on the Saraburi bu-pass which is about 10 - 15-minutes from school and now just waiting on the arrival of our container so we can get moved in and settled.

Many thanks for your advice previously, it made a world of difference.

Cheers.

We're doing well. It sounds like things are looking up for you in terms of getting settled. What direction from Saraburi is your house located? On the south side? It's still going to be a bit of a haul to BKK, although plenty of people do it all the time. Still, considering you've found a good school for your daughter, Saraburi is a good compromise between BKK and Korat. Our place is on the NW side of Hinkong several kilometers south of the city of Saraburi and north of Nong Khae. We're looking forward to getting back over there before too long.

[dvdlock]

Hi AmeriThai

We are on the south side of the city. About a mile up from the start of the west side bypass. School is probably less than 10-minutes away and on to the Bangkok road in a couple of minutes.

Looks like we ate almost neighbours! When do you think you will be next back?

First impressions of Saraburi on our first quick visit was 'oh no' but now we are finding our way around I'm actually quite liking it. Quite a sleepy little place but has pretty much all you need. May have a different view if I was younger. Notso good if you are looking for nightclubs and bars.

Cheers

Edited December 22, 2010 by dvdlock

[AmeriThai]

Hi AmeriThai

We are on the south side of the city. About a mile up from the start of the west side bypass. School is probably less than 10-minutes away and on to the Bangkok road in a couple of minutes.

Looks like we ate almost neighbours! When do you think you will be next back?

First impressions of Saraburi on our first quick visit was 'oh no' but now we are finding our way around I'm actually quite liking it. Quite a sleepy little place but has pretty much all you need. May have a different view if I was younger. Notso good if you are looking for nightclubs and bars.

Cheers

I'll send you a PM so as not to get the thread too far off track.