How to chose right school abroad

Admission to a school with help of educational agency

The most difficult moment in dealing with foreign schools is making a choice of right one, which fits your goals and planed budget.

1. When is the best time to enroll to schools abroad 

For this question, there is a rhetorical answer: the sooner the better. In fact, even in the highest rated schools you can find a place in April-May. However, it's only if you're lucky and they did not complete the class in your age group. Many schools say that the application should be made in October-November. In my experience, you can usually find a place in February-March. However, if you need to pass the official language test (for example IELTS or TOEFL) it is likely that in your country you have to book the date of the test at least 2 months in advance. Even if you came to the decision that you want to send a child to a foreign school somewhere in June - you can still try to find a place in a proper school.

2. The first acquaintance

To start acquaintance with future customers I clarify family goals.  A country where they consider the school does not have to match with the one where they want their child to enter the University. First of all, I find out which languages a child knows, at what level and what is his school's performance.

Second question would be what budget the family is planning to spend on schooling and what the budget for completion of education is.

Depending on the child's age and previous factors I might offer options which you have not even considered. For example, a child of 16 year old who is good in English and also studies German. The total budget for education may not exceed 150 thousand euros. What are the options?

If the child is a high achiever and he's highly motivated, you might consider the IB program in Germany or Austria. Within two years of IB program the student will prepare to enter competitive faculty in public German university where tuition is free if masters his German to C1 level. For this I would recommend to take German language as a subject IB at advanced level (in this program 3 subjects are studied at standard and 3 subjects at advanced level).

If performance is above average a good option would be to go to international schools in Canada where it is easier to hold an average score, while the cost of schooling starts from 35 thousand canadian dollars per year. Currently, the value of canadian dollar much lower then Euro. So, after child graduation from high school about 100 thousand euros for the completion of education would still remain with the family. Options, depending on the chosen specialty, can be different. A very good option is to receive a college diploma in a country which attracts immigration. Graduation from College in Canada allows working in this country and applying for citizenship after at least 2 years of higher education studies there. Sometimes, the budget for the education is likely to be lower than planned.

3. After the country and program is selected.

At this stage I would suggest a list of schools where we potentiality can find a place upon clients request. I ask a family to send us the report card for the last 2 years of previous schooling, possible certificates and diplomas that might confirm the level of
foreign language. After that,  my team contacts schools with more specific  request if they are able to offer a place for this candidate and, if the answer is positive, we explain the process of admission. With more specific proposal of schools, we offer to sign a contract for services of enrolling in foreign schools. The entire preliminary stage of the work very is very little noticeable to the client, but it requires a lot of knowledge on educational systems, programs, schools, personal contacts with the schools.

4. Tests and entrance exams.

From that moment, the more visible for client work of the Agency starts: enrollment  to chosen schools. Most good schools will ask the family to provide official confirmation of language proficiency before completing the application process. If a child enters the Junior school, it is possible to enter with lower entry level of language as in younger age of schooling he has enough time to study it. If we enroll the student to high school, especially to the last 2 years of studying, it is likely that the student needs to do official language test. Depending on the school and on personal ties with the school we can request school to hold a place for the student by the time he receives an official results of the language exam.

Some schools do not require official l language tests and request to do their own tests. In this case, the school considers the application with attached report cards and the recommendations of teachers. If the school finds these documents satisfactory, the student is assigned to exams and interview. Exams can be conducted in the Agency office and interviews is usually held via Skype. Some schools asks for the personal arrival of student to sit exams and have interview in school. At the same time, many schools would invite the student to spend 1-2 days in school to take the so-called "tester" when the student attends classes, spend the night in the boarding house, passes exams and meet with school staff which helps the school to make admission decision.

5. Working with Agency between admission and arrival to school

After admission to the school begins the third important stage of our work. The Agency arranges how the money can be transferred to school. Some schools require the payment of a Deposit and for one semester, some for the full year. When paying for a year, school, which considers the payment in parts, can offer small discount. In this stage, the school send the family a student contract, which shows how the student pays for the school: for example, by credit card or Bank transfer. After the payment, the Agency requests school documents for long-term student visa. We check that the child has a passport valid for at least 1 year and that the passport has sufficient free space to receive a long stay visa as depending on the country the visa application center may require up to 4 free pages in a row.

We also check the school calendar, inform the family when the child must arrive to the school, and leave the school grounds (on the half-semester holidays or some weekends when the campus is closed).

At the same time, we arrange child's guardian in the country of study where it's necessary and request an invoice for the service from the custodial Agency.

All these documents and data we send to the family, while they are preparing documents for visas. We also help to book air tickets and transfers on arrival. After obtaining visa, the family receives all the information for starting the school.

6. Agency work while student is at the school

After student starts to school, work with the Agency continues. You're always going to have questions, as long as your child is in the school: require documents for further payment, control of personal account of the student, what was paid before and what is require payment (transfers, textbooks, exams and others). The Agency would request current performance or reviews from various teachers, permission for your child to visit his friends and other questions, which can occur with a child while at school. We work with our students until they leave the school, which we helped them to enter.