International School In Chiang Mai Reasonable Fees

[EkSiriniran]

I'm a CMIS student and I'd recommend my school because it is goverment owned and the oldest international school over 60 years. On top of that, among all international schools CMIS is the cheapest in terms of money. It has high standards and all students are academicallly motivated if you're looking for a good English environment. This would be the perfect choice. Even though English programme schools are more affordable, international schools are different entirely in the sense that you get a legit English speaking envionment and international schools offer APs (Advanced Placement). However, if you are looking into British Curriculum Varee would also be a good choice. At last, I don't recomend Thai schools as of they don't offer much freedom and creative thinking. Everything goes by books and students are dictated based on my 8 year experince of attending a Thai school. I wish my parents had sent me to an international school when I was a kid.

Edited May 30, 2012 by EkSiriniran

[blossombkk]

I'm a CMIS student and I'd recommend my school because it is goverment owned and the oldest international school over 60 years. On top of that, among all international schools CMIS is the cheapest in terms of money. It has high standards and all students are academicallly motivated if you're looking for a good English environment. This would be the perfect choice. Even though English programme schools are more affordable, international schools are different entirely in the sense that you get a legit English speaking envionment and international schools offer APs (Advanced Placement). However, if you are looking into British Curriculum Varee would also be a good choice. At last, I don't recomend Thai schools as of they don't offer much freedom and creative thinking. Everything goes by books and students are dictated based on my 8 year experince of attending a Thai school. I wish my parents had sent me to an international school when I was a kid.

Thank you so much for your recommendation. I looked it up. it is missionary and we are not of any priority to them, as we are not missionaries, government employees, ngo and so forth.

[Ricardo]

When did the 'Church of Christ in Thailand' become "government-owned" ?

[BillyBobThai]

As some one who was raised in the christian theology, I would reccomend letting her be exposed to as many different theologies as possable. As an adult, they can then make some sort of an educated decision as opposed to being indoctrinated into just one religion.

[lannarebirth]

As some one who was raised in the christian theology, I would reccomend letting her be exposed to as many different theologies as possable. As an adult, they can then make some sort of an educated decision as opposed to being indoctrinated into just one religion.

One of the few same posts I've ever read here regarding education. We're a family of Buddhists but couldn't carer less if the International School is operated by Christians, Muslims, Jews, Hindus or Buddhists. It's the education that matters, including the ability to tke on boardm or completely ignore whatever religious stuff may be going on. Whichever one chooses, avoid Thai schools, "english programs" and focus on intertnationally acredited International Schools.

[Dante99]

When did the 'Church of Christ in Thailand' become "government-owned" ?

Never but give the kid a break, he writes better than many of the posters.

[JimShortz]

Have a look at Lanna.

Reasonably priced, no chance of attempts at conversion (!), wide range of kids with all sorts of language backgrounds and varying skill levels of English, decent teaching, and offers plenty of help for those with weak English.

Thanks, does look like a good choice.

cheers

Lanna is, as it states very clearly on the first page of the school website, "a non-sectarian, English-medium, international school". People of all faiths and no faith attend the school alongside each other with no problem at all. Religion is not a feature of the school in any way. I personally think that education and religion (whether you have religious beliefs or not) are two things best kept separate - and they are at Lanna.

The fees for your daughter's age is 188,000 Baht per year, with one off payments when you first join the school totalling 56,000 Baht (10,000 of which is a book deposit that is refunded when you leave the school). I believe that is the best value international education in Chiang Mai, especially when you consider Lanna fees include the cost of all University of Cambridge International Examinations entries, etc. All fees are published openly on the school website: http://lannaist.ac.t...fo/fee-schedule

NIS, which another poster suggested (wrongly I believe) provides the lowest cost international education in Chiang Mai has joining fees of 92,000 Baht (30,000 of which is refundable), and fees that I believe to be more than 188,000 Baht for the coming year, following significant fee hikes from this year to next, whilst Lanna has no increase in fees for the coming year. Can somebody share the actual fees for NIS, since on the website they only show for High School, rather than showing all fees?

It would be nice to get all of the schools' fees (and what it includes) set out more clearly!

Edited June 2, 2012 by JimShortz

[PoodMaiNgai]

However, if you are looking into British Curriculum Varee would also be a good choice.

Just be a little careful with this advice. Varee school's "international" section is called "Varee International : Varee Chiangmai School" rather than the more obvious "Varee International School" for a good reason - it isn't an international school, since it has no accreditation to be one. This is a major point since international accreditation is a stringent process and schools have to achieve certain standards in all areas (included highly qualified teachers) to obtain it. Varee has had this programme for two or three years now, but still has no accreditation. Why is that? hmm...

Anyone can put the word "international" somewhere in the school title, but it doesn't make them an international school, unless you are a believer in nominative determinism! Varee may be an option for some (the vast majority of current students are Thai rather than "international") to consider; just be clear about what you are joining.

The choices for true international schools in Chiang Mai are, unless someone can correct me:

British system: LIST (Lanna)

American system: CMIS, Prem (PTIS), NIS, APIS, GIS (Grace)

[tolstoy]

Why does everyone knock on Varee? It is an adequate school who has done a lot to build itself up from nothing in just under 10 years. I think that it is a reasonable alternative to other private schools.

Personally, I wouldn't waste my money at all. Send your kid to public school in your own country. In the long run it will be cheaper. They will get an overall better education. Unless you are in one of the top Inter schools in BKK, you aren't getting much for your money. 12 years of education in private/inter schools in CM will be more expensive than going to Harvard for 4 years. Regardless of what people say, going to international schools doesn't gaurantee oversees placement in Unis. A good student who passes the requirements can go to University in western schools even if they attend Thai public schools.

Personally, I would spend more time home educating than spending those hours working so you can afford the high costs of education.

To our young friend who is still in school. Giving advice or recommendations now is a little premature. See if you still recommend your school 5 years from now when you are in Uni and comparing to others. How well will you be prepared, how easy was it for you to get into a top University in a Western country? How good is your written academic Thai compared to your English? Many kids that go to International schools stay in Thailand and don't live or work abroad.

Finish your degree, get accepted and excell in University and then recommend your school. Of course you recommend your school or you wouldn't be going there now. However liking something doesn't mean that you are getting a valuable education worth the money.

[blossombkk]

Why does everyone knock on Varee? It is an adequate school who has done a lot to build itself up from nothing in just under 10 years. I think that it is a reasonable alternative to other private schools.

Personally, I wouldn't waste my money at all. Send your kid to public school in your own country. In the long run it will be cheaper. They will get an overall better education. Unless you are in one of the top Inter schools in BKK, you aren't getting much for your money. 12 years of education in private/inter schools in CM will be more expensive than going to Harvard for 4 years. Regardless of what people say, going to international schools doesn't gaurantee oversees placement in Unis. A good student who passes the requirements can go to University in western schools even if they attend Thai public schools.

Personally, I would spend more time home educating than spending those hours working so you can afford the high costs of education.

To our young friend who is still in school. Giving advice or recommendations now is a little premature. See if you still recommend your school 5 years from now when you are in Uni and comparing to others. How well will you be prepared, how easy was it for you to get into a top University in a Western country? How good is your written academic Thai compared to your English? Many kids that go to International schools stay in Thailand and don't live or work abroad.

Finish your degree, get accepted and excell in University and then recommend your school. Of course you recommend your school or you wouldn't be going there now. However liking something doesn't mean that you are getting a valuable education worth the money.

first of international schools in thailand are much better than where we come from, even the not expensive ones and homeschooling is always better everywhere, but then you deny the child from being around schoolmates and enjoying themselves like they should at this age and maybe that is the most important of all.

We are in thailand for a few more years, so going back home for school at this point wouldn't be a good solution for us, and maybe for others who chose to be here or came for work.

Thai schools are ruled out for many of us since the kids don't speak thai and we don't want them to feel outsiders to the thai schoolmates.

[zippydedodah]

"Personally, I wouldn't waste my money at all. Send your kid to public school in your own country. In the long run it will be cheaper. They will get an overall better education. Unless you are in one of the top Inter schools in BKK, you aren't getting much for your money. 12 years of education in private/inter schools in CM will be more expensive than going to Harvard for 4 years. Regardless of what people say, going to international schools doesn't gaurantee oversees placement in Unis. A good student who passes the requirements can go to University in western schools even if they attend Thai public schools."

12 yrs in CM international school is not going to be cheaper than Harvard.... Harvard's own website puts cost at about 40K per year... my kid goes to CMIS and costs about 6k/year for 12 yrs = 72k plus incremental yearly fee increases puts it closer to 80k total, about 2 yrs at harvard.

You are right, graduating from an international school (anywhere) does not guarantee placement in USA university... however, what it does offer, is easy of transferring credits IF you move back to US and/or your child decides to finish out HS, say in USA, for the experience or value of certain schooling available there. I have had a few friends who left international schools here, back to USA, and the ability to seamlessly (for the most part) transfer all your school credits is a real time saver, for the parents and the kids.

[Ricardo]

When did the 'Church of Christ in Thailand' become "government-owned" ?

Never but give the kid a break, he writes better than many of the posters.

Agreed, it was nice to see a younger person posting, and enthusiastic about his school.

Good for him, and a recommendation for his school, too !

[tolstoy]

Anyone who pays full price for harvard bought their way in. On average my yearly loans and parents contribution were less than 15k a year. I was in debt about 45k when I finished. I went to public school for gradeschool-highschool. So in a sense my total education cost me less than if I were to pay for my kids k-12 school in Thailand. Which I garuantee I have had a lot more opportunities with an ivy league education than a highschool diploma from a globally unknown Thai International school.

People spend a lot in Thailand for their education especially for what they get. Very few schools (even inter) can compare to public schools in western countries. Parent's pay thinking that it will open more doors and offer them a better future however many end up going to CMU or other local unis.

The cost of private education in Thailand is ridiculous.

I also wasn't stating homeschooling, I was talking about teaching more at home after school as a reinforcement. Spending more time with your kids after school educating them further, which a lot of parents don't do.

[lannarebirth]

Anyone who pays full price for harvard bought their way in. On average my yearly loans and parents contribution were less than 15k a year. I was in debt about 45k when I finished. I went to public school for gradeschool-highschool. So in a sense my total education cost me less than if I were to pay for my kids k-12 school in Thailand. Which I garuantee I have had a lot more opportunities with an ivy league education than a highschool diploma from a globally unknown Thai International school.

People spend a lot in Thailand for their education especially for what they get. Very few schools (even inter) can compare to public schools in western countries. Parent's pay thinking that it will open more doors and offer them a better future however many end up going to CMU or other local unis.

The cost of private education in Thailand is ridiculous.

I also wasn't stating homeschooling, I was talking about teaching more at home after school as a reinforcement. Spending more time with your kids after school educating them further, which a lot of parents don't do.

The average government subsidy per student in America for a public school education is just over $10,000/yr. One way or another the taxpayer pays for that. MOST International School education here is cheaper than that. I can understand the resentment however if one is paying the taxes for an education they're not taking advantage of in the states AND paying for an International School education here. I agree with you that a US public school education is superior to what most International schools offer here.

[Awk]

People spend a lot in Thailand for their education especially for what they get. Very few schools (even inter) can compare to public schools in western countries.

That is often stated, so it must be true. Or? I do not have enough knowledge to say, and wonder what you base your assumption regarding

international schools in Thailand on?

The cost of private education in Thailand is ridiculous.

I do not have mentionable knowledge about this either, but my impression is that international schools around the world pay "international salaries", which

in low-income countries perhaps makes for a very good living for those employed there, but makes the price "ridiculous" for anyone not making a similarly "international" salary. One would hope this would give the schools in question a fairly large amount of good teachers to choose amongst however.

[Mapguy]

However, if you are looking into British Curriculum Varee would also be a good choice.

Just be a little careful with this advice. Varee school's "international" section is called "Varee International : Varee Chiangmai School" rather than the more obvious "Varee International School" for a good reason - it isn't an international school, since it has no accreditation to be one. This is a major point since international accreditation is a stringent process and schools have to achieve certain standards in all areas (included highly qualified teachers) to obtain it. Varee has had this programme for two or three years now, but still has no accreditation. Why is that? hmm...

Anyone can put the word "international" somewhere in the school title, but it doesn't make them an international school, unless you are a believer in nominative determinism! Varee may be an option for some (the vast majority of current students are Thai rather than "international") to consider; just be clear about what you are joining.

The choices for true international schools in Chiang Mai are, unless someone can correct me:

British system: LIST (Lanna)

American system: CMIS, Prem (PTIS), NIS, APIS, GIS (Grace)

I can agree with the general meaning of this post. Varee is definitely not an accredited international school. In fact, the school has very few students in its "international program." Just call and ask them exactly how many students are enrolled in how many grade levels.

I am not a fan of all of the accredited international schools in Chiang Mai, of which there are a remarkable number for the size of the city. Look for the ones which have the highest levels of accreditation to satisfy if you want some indication of quality. Otherwise, in a room of ten sets of parents, you will probably get at least fifteen opinions of which is the best school!

Interesting about complaining parents. (And sometimes I think "happy" parents posting here really don't understand what schools should be.) Seems that many really don't really take effective part in their children's education. Not their fault in many ways. Their only experience with schools is their own, or they think that children "happy" with school equates to their being in a good school. (You'll see that sort of comment often on this forum.) Pass the responsibility on to schools!

On the other hand, I am not a fan of home schooling, especially in upper grades where parents couldn't possibly do the job. Perhaps more importantly, too many home-schooled children are not well socialized. The concept is appealing, but the reality of home schooling can be quite different!

[Mapguy]

Anyone who pays full price for harvard bought their way in. On average my yearly loans and parents contribution were less than 15k a year. I was in debt about 45k when I finished. I went to public school for gradeschool-highschool. So in a sense my total education cost me less than if I were to pay for my kids k-12 school in Thailand. Which I garuantee I have had a lot more opportunities with an ivy league education than a highschool diploma from a globally unknown Thai International school.

People spend a lot in Thailand for their education especially for what they get. Very few schools (even inter) can compare to public schools in western countries. Parent's pay thinking that it will open more doors and offer them a better future however many end up going to CMU or other local unis.

The cost of private education in Thailand is ridiculous.

I also wasn't stating homeschooling, I was talking about teaching more at home after school as a reinforcement. Spending more time with your kids after school educating them further, which a lot of parents don't do.

The average government subsidy per student in America for a public school education is just over $10,000/yr. One way or another the taxpayer pays for that. MOST International School education here is cheaper than that. I can understand the resentment however if one is paying the taxes for an education they're not taking advantage of in the states AND paying for an International School education here. I agree with you that a US public school education is superior to what most International schools offer here.

I hesitate to be too critical of Chiang Mai international schools generally. I do believe that some are better than others, much better, but I'll leave it at that.

The point made by Lannarebirth about taxes is not altogether accurate. The huge preponderance of schooling in the USA is supported by local taxation of property. The 50 states of the USA contribute much, much less than that. The federal government contributes even less. Accordingly, most (if I understand Lannarebirth correctly) here do not do much to support schooling in America unless they keep a residence and pay taxes at both state and federal levels.

Otherwise, good for Tolstoy! He apparently received a huge amount of financial assistance to go to Harvard, but he doesn't know or has not explained how his personal experience is broadly relevant and what the competition is to get into a hugely well-endowed (and well-respected) university like Harvard. There are a few, but not that many such universities! His comments are not reflective generally of the reality of the costs of tertiary education in America, even given rather generous help in various forms to students. Would you believe that parents earning up to USD100,000 can qualify for financial assistance for their children?!!

[letitbe]

My daughter is having difficulty with languages in general. that's on top of us not being an english speaking family. so i'd have to rule it out.

In that case I really don't understand why you would want an international school, or even a bilingual school or English program. International schools exist BECAUSE they offer all classes in English, to a UK or US curriculum. They are most suited for families who are staying in Thailand temporarily, for example because they're placed here by an employer or government for some period of time, but will then be moving on and their kids will still need to fit into the UK or US educational system. That's why they can charge a premium: UK/US standards for everything, and companies and governments paying the bills no matter how stratospheric they get.

If you don't want any of that including the language, then you should not be even looking at international schools but at good quality private Thai schools. There are many of those in Chiang Mai.

agreed to some extent but not IMO totally accurate. Our 2 kids now mid late teens will probably stay (i hope) i Thailand but we want them to have other options so until around age 12 we choice good thai private schools with english program and paid for extra thai lessons. After 12 we choose international at much higher cost but they do not match good schools in UK private or government so now we have to decide do they spend last 2-3 years in a Uk school private or government, a good USA school private of government or possibly a compromise a good boarding school in Singapore so we and they can have close contact and support from us not ot far away. UK and USA options we would need to move for 2-3 years to one of those countries which is not an attractive option but if need be we will ( my thai wife will hate it but prepared to do for our kids).

So we went for long time ago Thai school private pre school (Kindergarden), Year 1-6 good Thai private school english program, grade 7 to now international and next probably abroad before university abroad, Their are some good universities here but if you can afford it you send for final education to UK, USA, Australia, Canada, NZ or maybe SIngapore.

Its really expensive and weve put aside around 6 million baht to complete their education and I hope its not going to be more since we cant afford

more.

[Ricardo]

The choices for true international schools in Chiang Mai are, unless someone can correct me:

British system: LIST (Lanna)

American system: CMIS, Prem (PTIS), NIS, APIS, GIS (Grace)

Just to point out that the IB-system (International Baccalaureate), which is followed throughout at Prem, is an international-system rather than American. The IB-organisation itself is based in Geneva, Switzerland.

And I'd add CDSC (German/Austrian/Swiss-based) to the list.

[lannarebirth]

Anyone who pays full price for harvard bought their way in. On average my yearly loans and parents contribution were less than 15k a year. I was in debt about 45k when I finished. I went to public school for gradeschool-highschool. So in a sense my total education cost me less than if I were to pay for my kids k-12 school in Thailand. Which I garuantee I have had a lot more opportunities with an ivy league education than a highschool diploma from a globally unknown Thai International school.

People spend a lot in Thailand for their education especially for what they get. Very few schools (even inter) can compare to public schools in western countries. Parent's pay thinking that it will open more doors and offer them a better future however many end up going to CMU or other local unis.

The cost of private education in Thailand is ridiculous.

I also wasn't stating homeschooling, I was talking about teaching more at home after school as a reinforcement. Spending more time with your kids after school educating them further, which a lot of parents don't do.

The average government subsidy per student in America for a public school education is just over $10,000/yr. One way or another the taxpayer pays for that. MOST International School education here is cheaper than that. I can understand the resentment however if one is paying the taxes for an education they're not taking advantage of in the states AND paying for an International School education here. I agree with you that a US public school education is superior to what most International schools offer here.

I hesitate to be too critical of Chiang Mai international schools generally. I do believe that some are better than others, much better, but I'll leave it at that.

The point made by Lannarebirth about taxes is not altogether accurate. The huge preponderance of schooling in the USA is supported by local taxation of property. The 50 states of the USA contribute much, much less than that. The federal government contributes even less. Accordingly, most (if I understand Lannarebirth correctly) here do not do much to support schooling in America unless they keep a residence and pay taxes at both state and federal levels.

Otherwise, good for Tolstoy! He apparently received a huge amount of financial assistance to go to Harvard, but he doesn't know or has not explained how his personal experience is broadly relevant and what the competition is to get into a hugely well-endowed (and well-respected) university like Harvard. There are a few, but not that many such universities! His comments are not reflective generally of the reality of the costs of tertiary education in America, even given rather generous help in various forms to students. Would you believe that parents earning up to USD100,000 can qualify for financial assistance for their children?!!

That's a 5 second search, you can expand on it if you want.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2010-06-29-school-spending_N.htm

[Mapguy]

Thanks, Lannarebirth. I stand corrected. I see that the state and local community contributions averaged nationally in America are now about even.

And Riccardo has made a good point. The IB curriculum is not an American school curriculum, and it is followed in several countries worldwide. The school year for PREM follows the (not-exclusively) "western" schedule for schools.

Edited June 8, 2012 by Mapguy

[Dante99]

The point made by Lannarebirth about taxes is not altogether accurate. The huge preponderance of schooling in the USA is supported by local taxation of property. The 50 states of the USA contribute much, much less than that. The federal government contributes even less. Accordingly, most (if I understand Lannarebirth correctly) here do not do much to support schooling in America unless they keep a residence and pay taxes at both state and federal levels.

To support public schools you would have to pay taxes but there is no requirement to keep a residence, federal taxes are due for all citizens, non-resident state taxes are due for many and property taxes are due for all property, not just residences.

[anto]

My daughter is at Dara and she is a Buddhist .I am a lapsed Catholic .She keeps her Buddhist beliefs but gets an insight to other beliefs .She just started this term and loves it so far .She is 8 years old ad the first year costs arond B60,000 . ( the very top of what i can pay ).

[PoodMaiNgai]

Just to point out that the IB-system (International Baccalaureate), which is followed throughout at Prem, is an international-system rather than American. The IB-organisation itself is based in Geneva, Switzerland.

Yes, and the IB is a well recognised international qualification, that can get students into top universities worldwide - albeit at a fairly hefty fee at Prem Tinsulanonda International School. But then I'm told it costs schools a lot of money to offer this programme, so they have little choice but to pass this on to us.

I believe the other option for internationally recognised qualifications in Chiang Mai (as opposed to "in house" diplomas) is the British A Level qualifications offered at Lanna International School. At the moment my 3 children are all very young, but if I was choosing now I would be choosing between one of these two systems. It seems that both are good, but different.

There was an interesting article in British newspaper, The Telegraph, trying to help students choose between these two systems, with the heading: "To choose between A-levels and International Baccalaureate, ask whether you are a specialist or an all-rounder." This article is well worth a read: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/secondaryeducation/8881037/How-to-choose-between-A-levels-and-IB.html

It seems that the key difference is that the British A Levels has students focus on their areas of strength and stop studying things that they are not good at, or plain don't like (so good for students who are not true "all rounders"), whereas with the IB students must all still follow a broad curriculum incorporating six groups: language, second language, individuals and societies, mathematics and computer science, experimental sciences and the arts + theory of knowledge + dissertation type research assignment (so very good for truly "all rounder" students).

So, I guess I will see which better suits each of my kids, and my pocket, in a few years time.

[Ricardo]

Interestingly my sister-in-law's girls, who attend a good local government-school in the UK, are offered a choice of either A-levels or I.B., which allows the customers to vote with their feet ! The useful Telegraph-article also makes the point that IB often demands more time from the students, who may therefore miss-out on other activities, social or cultural or sporting.

The Wiki-article on IB says that various stages of IB (Primary Years, Middle Years & Diploma Program) are taught in 141 countries, although that would include a country where just one school taught one stage, and the country might be a very small one ! Nevertheless it suggests that this is a fairly-widespread international-scheme, which might be important, if you & your family relocate regularly for work-reasons.

Here in Thailand the IBO list 17 schools offering at-least one stage (usually the Diploma Program), these are mainly in Bangkok but also include Phuket, Pattaya/Chonburi and Rayong, as well as Chiang Mai. Only three schools (Concordian, KIS & NIST) in Bangkok, plus Prem, offer all three stages.

Here in Chiang Mai, APIS also offer the IB Primary Years Program, in their Elementary School.

[nytom]

hi all,

hmmm, i think everybody should reconsider in what kind of school the kids would have biggest chances to get their diploma. regarding british dominated igcse schools, hard to change the school later on, most others teaching by the american curriculum.

and even if needed later on, easy and cheap to take the exams, like in chiang mai, google british council chiang mai

bangkok are plenty others, and only for a few thousands bahts. i by myself are happy that my kids join the much more human and easy american curriculum. but i guess, i have no geniuses....hahaha

[Ricardo]

but i guess, i have no geniuses....hahaha

Isn't it a strange coincidence how we all find this, despite our own undoubted high-intelligence, I wonder what our own parents were saying about us, at this stage in life ?