There are 7 International schools that are recognized by the Good Schools Guide International (1). However, they are not branded as a GSGI school which meets the International standards for first tier schools. Obviously these schools in Ho Chi Minh City are generally in second or third tiers. Therefore, the researcher is going to look at the school's curriculum, the teachers, diverse student bodies and the facilities of the schools. In order to do so, official school websites, expat forums/reviews (2) and parent's reviews and testimonies (3) on them. These schools are listed as follows:
ABC International School
www.theabcschool.net
American International School
www.ais.edu.vn
Australian International School
www.aisvietnam.com
Renaissance International School Saigon
www.rissaigon.edu.vn
Saigon South International School
www.ssis.edu.vn
The British International School
www.bisvietnam.com
The International School, Ho Chi Minh City
www.ishcmc.com
Firstly, ABC International School is a independent for profit school that belongs to British International Schools Worldwide (BISW) and the Federation of British International Schools in South East Asia and East Asia (FOBISSEA). It comprises of 580 students in total ages 2-17 and offers IGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education) following the National Curriculum for England. It is a co-ed school with a diverse student body of Vietnamese, Korean, Indian, Singaporean, Filipino, Canadian, British, French, Americans etc The facilities are standard and the campus is near Phu My Hung residence which houses International families.
The American International School is an Independent, private also for profit school that employs five Vietnamese teachers amongst American and International Teachers. Generally they have around 900 students as of 2009 exact figures for 2016 have not been released. Students range from aged 6-18 studying in a co-ed environment following either a choice of the IB (International Baccalaureate) system or the American High School Diploma (College preparatory) system. The school has a imbalanced student body of 90% Vietnamese and the rest are foreigners.
The Australian International School is an Australian Based Curriculum school established in August 2006 by a Vietnamese couple, in which its is a independent private for profit school that employs mainly Australian and New Zealand teachers. It was facing financial trouble before it merged with Academic Colleges Group International School Vietnam (ACG) (which a private company based in New Zealand with more than 10 schools from 3 countries ) from July 1st 2013. It has a diverse student body with over 1100 students from 35 different nationalities at 3 campuses. It follows the Cambridge Lower Secondary Education Program (IGCSE) through years 7-11 and the IB (International Baccalaureate) program for senior students through years 12-13.
Saigon South International School is a non profit school run by the Phu My Hung Cooperation. Established in 1997, the school one of the first International Schools in Vietnam. It is a coed school with a diverse student body of over 850 students from over thirty-three countries. The teaching staff comprises of North America, Australia and the United Kingdom. The School has a student to teacher ratio of 10:1. Their facilities are modern and meet International standards. The school offers an American standards-based curriculum (AP) and International Baccalaureate Diploma Program (IBDP) in senior school.
The British International School Vietnam is a for profit school established in August 1997 by a Vietnamese couple. It is a a coed school with 2000 students with a diverse student body. The School implements a British curriculum for primary school students following the IPC(International Primary Curriculum) and utilizes IGCSE Cambridge for high school students, and for senior school students they offer the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program (IBDP) in senior school. The School's consists of three campuses a Primary Campus, A secondary campus and an extension of it. Their facilities for academic and extracurricular are sufficient.
International School Ho Chi Minh City is a for profit school run by a company called Cognita, which is a private international schools group, currently encompassing sixty-four schools across three continents. It is the oldest International School in Vietnam established in 1993. The school is coed with 850 students from 50 nationalities. It folllows the IB program system all the way from primary to senior school (PYP, MYP and IB diploma). It has diverse teacher nationalities. The school has only one campus, with sufficient facilities to meet international standards. They also promise an expansion in 2017.
Generally these schools are second to third tier International Schools due to the fact that these schools were not reviewed by a credible independent third party organization such as The Good School Guides International. In addition, these schools are relatively new with the oldest school ISHCMC (1993). This results in inexperience in teaching, managing the schools and building a good curriculum. Also, some of these schools are run by for profit companies and private individuals who do not have the school's best interest in mind and only care about profit maximization and rapid growth/expansion to compete with other schools in attracting more students. The top three International Schools in the researcher's opinion along with information gathered from expat forums and parents blogs are as follow:
1. Saigon South International School
This school is a not for profit school with with a small student to teacher ratio 10:1 and has less than 1000 students which makes it a very close knit community. In addition the campus is great as it is very large and has a proper soccer pitch and this school has the best America curriculum available in Vietnam.
Comparison of SSIS SAT results with worldwide averages
Critical Reading
Math
Writing
SSIS
Class of 2013 Results
552
656
599
Average SAT score for American students entering college in September 2015
494
511
484
This table shows that this school student's SAT Scores are much higher than the national average. A parent in the expat forum said that As far as teacher packages South has the best in HCMC. Money is spent on PD every year and it is the only not for profit school in HCMC.
2. British International School
According to a parent the British International School has the best British curriculum in Ho Chi Minh City. However the Primary and Secondary campuses are crowded and packed as it has around 2000 students.
University Destinations 2015
Total number of graduates:
74
Number of students going to universities in the UK:
16
Number of students going to universities in Australia:
6
Number of students going to universities in the USA:
18
Number of students going to universities in Canada:
5
Number of students going to universities in mainland Europe:
6
Number of students going to universities in Asia:
13
Number of students on gap year:
9
Number of students doing national service
1
http://www.bisvietnam.com/wp-content/up … online.pdf
3. International School Ho Chi Minh City
International School Ho Chi Minh City on the other hand has the most experience as it is the longest international school operating in Vietnam, however after ownership changes by Cognita a privately held education company owning over 66 International Schools Worldwide many of this international school's talented minds left. In 2016, they plan to build a new campus less than 10 minutes drive from the current campus.
http://ishcmc.com/download.php?file=TWpJMw
Conclusion:
Although none of the International Schools in Ho Chi Minh City met the requirements of the Good Schools International Guide to the best international schools there are some decent schools. The most problematic issue facing expat and national families when the right international is that there no alternative program to IBDP as a senior student. The only school that offers A levels as an alternative to this program is ABC International School, however this school has a small student body, poor facilities and doesnot have a good reputation like the top three schools mentioned above. The researcher's advice to prospective parents is that if their son/daughter knows exactly what they want to do in life and major in University it is strongly recommended that you send them to Singapore, Hongkong or Shanghai/Beijing for their senior years and take Alevels. If your children prefer to do the IB than it is more prudent just to let them study in Vietnam and save costs.
Citations/Sources:
Good Schools Guide International (1)
http://www.gsgi.co.uk/site
expat forums/reviews (2)
http://internationalschoolsreview.com/v … php?t=2527
parent's reviews and testimonies (3)
http://www.expatexchange.com/rspnet.cfm … amp;rid=62http://hello-saigon.com/2013/01/16/what … minh-city/https://xotours.vn/blog/2013/10/27/a-gu … n-vietnam/