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Q: Would you pay RMB 200k per year in school fees for your 4 year old?...even if you could afford it
Or to rephrase, are the fees at the more popular International Schools justified?
I met someone who's supposedly paying close to RMB 200k in school fees for his 4 year old daughter. Is this normal amongst expats with kids here?
12 years 15 weeks ago in Family & Kids - China
During the next school year, my four year olds will be attending an American school at around 120k each for the year. Is it worth it? To me it is.
My boys are learning English and decent morals. The class size is around 6-10 students with 2-3 teachers each.
They originally went to a Chinese school for about 20k each and that was little better than a zoo. 30-40 kids per class with 2-3 teachers each. No English, no social training, nothing. Just barely organized chaos.
However, once they reach 1st grade, they will be going to a Chinese school for several years so that they can better learn Chinese and get a better grasp on study techniques. Then it will be back to foreign schools once they hit 7th grade.
Xpat.John:
I own an IT company and my wife is the GM of a pharm company. But even with our salaries, it is still expensive. My friends in Guangzhou send their child to a school that is almost as good, but it is much less at 40k per year.
Since both my wife & I work 10-12 hours per day and travel a lot, home schooling is unfortunately out of the question.
It's probably not justified. I've seen the things they teach and what they do it's not worth it. I mean with a payment like that I'm sure the parent could find something much better. Why would it be worth that much in the first place. That's the amount somebody going to college will pay, but not even that much cheaper.
That's why I like the education system in the states. Although the school isn't perfect it was still a free public school.
What are the things that the international school will do that will make it worth 200k rmb to attend? I just don't get it.
giadrosich:
Actually, nothing is free. People who own houses pay for government school in the U.S. through millage taxes. Remember, government does not create wealth, they just get it from me and you.
My Chinese daughter is in a Chinese grammar school. Per law in China, grammar grades are free of charge, except if you use a private school. Middle school runs about 5,000 Rmb per school year, High School is 10,000 Rmb per year. Of course, you pay for books and uniforms.
At least, this is what the Principal of the school my daughter attends told me, and I do not pay anything so far.
She does take English classes with an English private school, 6 hours per week, for 900 Rmb every three months.
The most expensive school-fees in Guangzhou ( ok, the ones i've heard of ) are 25K / schoolyear , are you sure that person isn't bullshittin ' you
Xpat.John:
Check out the fees at Clifford's International School in Panyu. For 4 year olds it is about 150k per year. There are other schools that charge that much in Panyu too. 25k sounds like a mid-low level Chinese 'public' school.
instant_noodles:
the 25 K- one was the Canadian kindy in Panyu , a friend's kid went there, but 120 K! that's an awful lot:-(
jiangsu.emc:
The American international school in GZ charges up to $27,000 per year (170,000RMB) and this is a non-profit school.
NEWP. That's regal boarding school money. No one is pay that for a 4-year-old
welll to answer your question if you can easily afford it and you are earning good money then of course you would choose the best school, as its like to small change to you. All schools are there to make money but they will have costs associated with staff, facilities etc.
The OP is correct about some international schools charging 200,000RMB per year(this is true for second tier cities too). However, these fees are not paid by the family/parents. The fees are taken care of by the company the father/mother works for (ie large multinational companies like Ford, BP, Nestle, etc).
But if a family is self-paying(company doesn't pay) most international schools will have a discount policy for these families as it would be unrealistic to expect a family to pay this sum each year. Therefore, if you are in this category do not be afraid to contact an international school and ask for about their discount policy. You might be surprised what they offer.
