Brighton College - is it worth it? Chances of getting in now?

It's a selective school as you know, that cannot just apply on application. The 'drive by Brighton' was a joke. Implication being why would you want to. Sorry rubbish sense of humour. yes i see, but of course not all kids can take the pressure of maintaining the criteria, especially when they are testing them at fs1/2 etc its only later on in the school life etc. and i drive past brighton college all the time, but then my kids have been in their school for many moons and so there is no need to change, and couldnt anyways because they dont do the years not that i am going to. very happy as i am.

It's a selective school as you know, that cannot just apply on application. The 'drive by Brighton' was a joke. Implication being why would you want to. Sorry rubbish sense of humour.

I have always assumed that after an 11+ type exam children will be asked to leave but not sure that will happen in Abu Dhabi. It's a long way off and fingers crossed not something I have to worry about. I have lots of friends with children at bsak who live off island and have no problem with the commute, 25 mins tops - but why drive by Brighton :-)) sorry do you mean, that if they start at nursery or so in bc and get to the 11+ and fail that they will then be told to leave? dont be surprise that people do stay a long time, we are nearly into our 16th year here, and it was only going to be for 18 months. i live off island and commute but dont drive past bc, as i come down mussafah road, and you will find that loads of people do, they dont all come over the new bridge etc, a lot of bsak teachers live in al reef so thats even further than khalifa cities. the 2030 plan is that all the government buildings will be moved to khalifa city c so in kca and b (in particular) it will be really close.

I have always assumed that after an 11+ type exam children will be asked to leave but not sure that will happen in Abu Dhabi. It's a long way off and fingers crossed not something I have to worry about. I have lots of friends with children at bsak who live off island and have no problem with the commute, 25 mins tops - but why drive by Brighton :-))

If these results were true, then selective or not, it would be an amazing achievement! Even the selective public schools in London don't get results like that! However I was most impressed with BSAK's results, approx half of their GCSEs were A/A*, and they're not selective. I think in a way all the schools out there are selective inasmuch as if a family uproots to move there, they must be reasonably hard working. And a family's attitude towards effort is crucial. The school can only do so much. I think I may have missed the boat on BC this year anyway. My older lad will go on the waiting list once he has sat their exam (assuming he passes). However the waiting list for year 2 has now closed, so they're even going as far as refunding her application fee! So I guess that's a no! BusyBee, sorry to be a pain, but if we lived off island, do you think the kids could still attend BSAK? I can see on the map that it's not far, but I've also experienced Abu Dhabi traffic during a brief visit. And are there even busses running from KCA/MBZCITY ? Thanks a mil! yeh you are right about being selective etc, in the fact that you will get more educated people moving over here, but thats all said and done, it doesnt mean to say that your children are going to be clever or have the right attitude especially in the teenage years! i live off island have done for like 10 years, firstly in kca before anybody else moved there, and everyone thought i was MAD to live that far out, when in fact it took me (in those days) 13 minutes door to door, compared to people living in town could easily take 20 minutes just to drive 2 blocks.... because of the traffic lights etc. so the answer is i have been doing that drive for years now, door to door going to sch is 20 minutes, because of the roadworks it takes me like 1 or 2 minutes more coming home. yes there are buses from kca and mbz and what do you know kcb, and baniyas and beyond......

The first year they were only selective with regards to spoken English, lots of children did not sit entrance exams, that only came last year so as a first year I think this is a good result. I have no idea what the other schools are achieving but I'm sure you can enlighten us :-) yes that may have been the case, because it was a new school, they wanted "bums on seats" but if they are selective then it falls down the wayside when the kids are already in the school and started right at the bottom working there way up if they cannot keep up with the curriculum and the pressures etc. i am not saying that any particular school is better than others, brighton college and repton will be the same select their pupils the likes of yasmina and bsak etc do not, so you are going to have a much more diverse selection of academic achievements in other schools. i do know that some people did fail the entrance tests.

The first year they were only selective with regards to spoken English, lots of children did not sit entrance exams, that only came last year so as a first year I think this is a good result. I have no idea what the other schools are achieving but I'm sure you can enlighten us :-)

Heard this morning, unofficial source that the expected gcse results are looking good, 80% A*s. not bad for first year of the exams. but really they should be better than the other schools as they are selective.

Heard this morning, unofficial source that the expected gcse results are looking good, 80% A*s. not bad for first year of the exams.

JoJo, if it is the entrance test for BC you are worried about, I wouldn't worry too much. I have been told by a teacher there that the pass mark is 100, which is average, and they have accepted lower.

Georgie, we have applied to al Yasmina and BSAK that's it!!! We aren't going t apply to BC for a number of reasons. I could do with one more really but there arent that many schools that will take all three kids. My younger two have more chance of getting a place if we keep them all together. I also think it would be better for them to be at the same school. I think I will hang on til I definitely know he's got the job now, only 2 more days. Also hoping to get out for a visit in the next 2 weeks so I can have a look round a few then. We haven't told our kids anything yet!!! The little ones will be fine but goodness knows how the big one will react.

We are in the same boat re Brighton college. They have told us that we are unlikely to get a place for my youngest, maybe for my middle one and yes for my year 10 boy if he passes the entrance test and this will help the others to get in. - no pressure for him then!!!! So basically the only chance my little two have is if the big one passes the exam. I think they should just make us pay for the big one and see if he passes the test but we have to pay for them all. Might give it a miss.

Afraid I don't know about your chances as we are already in Brighton, but since my son is in Year 7, I thought I'd chime in: we are very happy at Brighton and we feel that our son has done very well there. There are various sets to reflect the various levels of kids coming in - my son is in the advanced sets in Maths and English, for instance, and feels quite challenged, whereas in previous schools he felt quite bored. His cousin who is in Year 7 in a great school in London is nowhere near his level in either subject.. My son has also gone from being a shy 11-year old to seeking our roles in the many plays and performances that Brighton has. He's not as sporty due to some issues with his feet, but there are plenty of sports events and activities. As for "posh" - yes, there are many families who seem to have unlimited means :-) We do fine as we both work, but we prefer to squirrel our extra away instead of keeping up with the Jones, and I don't feel at all the need to live my life any differently than I did back home (we're from the US) You will find that this pressure is an Abu Dhabi issue, not just a school issue,,,and actually, from what I hear from friends, the pressure to "keep up" if one feels it, is much more prevalent in Dubai than here. Best of luck with your choices and welcome to Abu Dhabi! <em>edited by ADDANIELLE on 03/05/2013</em>

I am pretty sure BISAD is slight more expensive than BC in primary. Early Years FS1 and FS2 AED 48,822 Years 1-5 AED 58,814 Years 6-9 AED 60,234 I wondered if I had gotten an incorrect email. BC is: FS1 and 2 - 47530 Years 1-5 - 56260 Years 6-9 - 61640 HTH

You might struggle with year 2 but not sure about year 7. There is a good choice of other British curriculum schools in Abu Dhabi but I can't comment on those as only have children at Brighton and although have lots of friends with kids spread across these schools I still wouldn't feel qualified to comment. I will say that the choice of school has alot to do with where you are going to live as well. I can tell you that we are very happy at Brighton. The facilities are great and we have a full size theatre where many plays/musicals are regularly performed. There are specialist music teachers who inspire the kids and a choir who are making a name for themselves. The same with sport as well, starting to make a name for themselves. There is a varied choice of extra curricular activities starting from fs2, the majority of these are free and run from Sunday - Wednesday. You can choose to do none or 4 a week if you prefer. The teachers are fabulous and in my opinion make the difference. The school is dedicated to employing experienced staff and it shows in their dedication and commitment. I only have children in the pre prep school but am looking forward to the next stage, prep school as I hear even better things from there. Downside, really its only been the communication and they seem to have got that under control. It's only one school though and there are others with more to come, but yes in my opinion its worth it.

Hi helpful ladies My family is (hopefully) moving to Abu Dhabi this summer. I'm just starting to realise what a fuss getting into a school over there is. I want to keep my children (11 and 5) together ideally as it's a new country, and the little girl is far too young to be bussed about unaccompanied. We're looking for spaces in year 7 and 2, British curriculum. The school is important as they go to a good school in London, and my son is already almost finished a fair chunk of the year 7 syllabus whilst in year 6 (yes pushy parent heaven I know...!) He also really likes his sports and music. So far we're on waiting list at British School AK and Al Yasmina and will be applying for BISAD tomorrow. Brighton College looks excellent, but it's waaaaay more than we pay in London. For our year groups they are accepting children onto the 'waiting list' whatever that is! I filled in the application forms, but in order to join this 'waiting list' we need to pay 500 DHS per child. I don't want to pay the cash if we aren't going to even be offered a place at the end of it. Can anyone guess what our chances of 2 places are at this time of year? And also, does anyone have any experience of Brighton College over there? UK one has an excellent reputation, but not sure if it's transferred? Also, it looks a bit posh. We won't be the wealthiest family in Abu Dhabi, and I was wondering if Brighton would draw us into a never ending attempt to keep up with the Jones? Or expensive school trips? Does anyone have any experience of any of these British schools? Any advice appreciated. Will buy you a coffee/wine upon my arrival by way of appreciation! Thanks heaps. Karen. hi yes its not easy to get into the schools here. have they told you what number you are on bsak or yasmina? you will probably find it easier to get the 11 year old into school, if so, then the younger one will go up the waiting list, fs1 and fs2 are the most difficult years to get into as well as sixth form etc. if you bus them, quite often there is a bus monitor too. have you looked at repton? same as brighton college but will cost..... brighton college is in its second year, has and is still having teething problems, but thats usual with new schools usually, but as with brighton college they do an entrance test, and yes there will be more pressure to keep up and i know some people who are in the school are concerned but then again this is what these schools will be like. the best school really for sports and music is the more established ones, but bc has done really well so far. all the schools here will have waiting lists, the issue is that they can only offer the places for fs1/2 in the first instance, as they know how many places there have, but the other years, until someone leaves and a place becomes available they dont know, so you go on a waiting list, some people have been waiting a couple of years for particular year groups...! you will need to pay the 500dhs to get on the waiting list, otherwise you will not stand a chance as your application will not be processed. brighton college is not going to be the same as bc uk, it will of course, have a lot of the same elements etc, but with all schools here the curriculum has to be tweaked to follow the arabic which is mandatory etc. yes brighton college and repton are "posh" schools, but bsak and yasmina are just as good, if not better as they are more established, but are non profit. but its good there are more choices now and more competition, good for everyone. in the past there were only 2 british schools. have you looked at the new cambridge international school ? opening this sept.http://www.gemscambridgeinternationalschool-abudhabi.com/home.php?&parentid=933 yes they do have expensive trips, they were going to japan (although i believe it got cancelled??) and nepal, but then the other schools do trips as well. have been like 15 years so do know a tad about the schools here... lol