UWC South East Asia
...Securing a school place out of term time
Like many international schools, ACS International Schools in England and Qatar practises rolling admissions, so late-arriving families can still be accommodated in some grades. Employers are encouraged to look around the schools on behalf of relocating parents.
For anyone relocating from Scotland to England with children, it is worth remembering that the summer term ends considerably earlier in Scotland, so there is a chance to finish the academic year there and enrol in a school in England for a short period before the end of term, taking advantage of some school places that may not be available in the new academic year.
ADMISSIONS AND MARKETING TEAMS Understanding how admissions work in a school can be your passport to success.
The Secondary School Admission Test Board’s (SSATB)
2015 International School Admission Industry Report revealed that there was little operational standardisation across international-school admissions. Admissions at international schools differed widely, in terms of both the numbers and the titles of admissions staff.
The report highlighted the most effective marketing tools from the admissions perspective. Among these were referrals from families of pupils currently or formerly at the school, school tours, videos, relocation agents, HR managers, social media, and newsletters and magazines. Although the SSATB is US-based, judging from my visit
to April 2016’s Council of British International Schools (COBIS) conference for admissions and marketing professionals, the experience is pretty similar. The conference was hosted by the Prague British School.
Its team had done an excellent job of putting together a programme that reflected the challenges of forward-thinking international schools and provided professional development opportunities in key areas like digital and risk and security.
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relocateglobal.com | Keep Informed
Certainly, that audience was keen to engage with the employer market. They recognised, in particular, the value of video to tell the story of their schools. Social media was also playing an increasingly key part in their marketing strategies. HR and relocation professionals should be able to glean a lot from school websites, and these are set to grow in importance.
Schools that deal regularly with incoming relocating families understand both the pressures on the employer and the parents’ perspective. While appreciating that it is ideal to visit a school well ahead of decision-making, they realise that sometimes video and live Skype have to suffice. At Relocate’s International Education Forum in February
2016, ISL’s Heather Mulkey recounted having to, on occasion, take a laptop round the school to reassure an anxious parent. Many international
schools are extremely good at
meeting the needs of relocating families. Presentations by ACS International Schools, TASIS and Marymount at the forum gave examples of the steps they take to support employers and relocating families. These include parent groups, who play a huge role in settling families and ultimately retaining talent for their employers. See
relocateglobal.com for details. Vicky Seehafer, director of admissions at Hong Kong International School (HKIS), reinforces the point. “Our parents are very actively involved in the school community, from volunteering in the classroom and serving on the Parent Advisory Group to chaperoning on field trips. The Parent Faculty Organisation is an important part of our community and also runs programmes to help settle incoming families.”
SUMMER SCHOOLS
Though it brings a host of opportunities, relocating to a new country can be stressful, particularly for children, who must cope with a change of school as well as unfamiliar surroundings.
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