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Schools

11
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 20 April 2013 - 20:41

Hello ladies,
We are moving from dubai to Abu Dhabi in the summer and would like to know your opinions on a few school issues. We have 3 kids. 1 has been offered a place at bcad and the other 2 quite high on the waiting list. And, at BSAK , my youngest has been offered a place in sept 2014 for FS2 which puts my other 2 at about 3rd on the waiting list for this coming September! Both schools have assured us the kids will get in this September but I feel quite nervous about the move without a confirmation of a school place. Also, do any of you know of any nurseries near BSAK for my youngest? And last thing........if we're lucky to be offered both schools, which one would you go for? Hope this all makes sense! TIA

4747
Posts
EW MASTER
Latest post on 22 April 2013 - 08:37
Thanks busybee2. Think I may give BSAK a call to make sure it is 2014. Must say, it does Seem strange and if a mistake, quite a big mistake! My kids are at Dubai British school at the moment, lovely little school, were sad to leave. i would just to be sure, as unless they have changed their admission criteria i have heard many a time the registrar saying that applications dont carry over, you must apply each year etc. yeh i know someone that in seniors was in bsak and moved over to dbs.
11
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 22 April 2013 - 06:42
Thanks busybee2. Think I may give BSAK a call to make sure it is 2014. Must say, it does Seem strange and if a mistake, quite a big mistake! My kids are at Dubai British school at the moment, lovely little school, were sad to leave.
4747
Posts
EW MASTER
Latest post on 20 April 2013 - 22:09
r you sure that its for 2014 the place? as i know for a fact that they make you reapply again the next year if you dont get in this year for example. the applications dont carry over to the next year. they will try and fit families in together of course. the school send around emails to ask for people to give them notice if they are leaving, but people dont, because they dont want to tell until they need to, but you will find that quite a few will just not come back over the summer, or they will have offers from other schools elsewhere so places become available, but the issue is that they cannot give you what they dont know at the time. its a waiting game. but to get 1 in you go up the list.
4747
Posts
EW MASTER
Latest post on 20 April 2013 - 22:06
Thanks for replying busybee2, My other 2 kids will be years 1 and 2 this September. I must say we were amazed when BSAK offered our youngest FS2 in2014 but we've paid up and he's in! I don't suppose you know why there is limited space in FS1? Do they have less classes? What are the chances of my youngest getting in this year if my other 2 are offered a place? Does he then "go up" on the waiting list for this year!?! All very confusing stuff!!! I think if we manage to get all 3 kids into 1 school,that will decide for us but I have to say I have not read one bad thing aboutBSAK so really wanted to know if this school is worth the effort of finding my youngest a nursery for a year then changing him again the next year. That will be a lot of changes for such a little man! Do you happen to know when BSAK start offering places? Is it as and when kids leave? Thanks again,sorry if I sound all over the place,have lots on my mind!!! fs1/nursery have 3 classes each, then in reception/fs2 they go up to 5 with 25 in each class. when you get to secondary the classes go down to maximum of 22. in order to get any chance of getting a place you need to put application in when they open ie jan/feb it does change. you can imagine for nursery there are only 75 places available, and then for reception if those 75 kids move up there is only another 50 spaces available........ you will find that people will fight over places in bsak, but of course there are lot of factors, the new primary facilities are brill, my kids have been through all the school and we had to put up with all the "old" facilitites, but of course the school is now complete. they do offer the places at the bottom of the year early because they know they have only so many but for the other years they will offer when they have available, but if you have one accepted then sibilings will be next priority and you will move up the list considerably. if the others get a place this year put the smallest one in nursery if you dont get a place, not everyone does fs1 because they cant all fit in, a lot will do nursery elsewhere. which school are you in now?
11
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 20 April 2013 - 21:29
Thanks for replying busybee2, My other 2 kids will be years 1 and 2 this September. I must say we were amazed when BSAK offered our youngest FS2 in2014 but we've paid up and he's in! I don't suppose you know why there is limited space in FS1? Do they have less classes? What are the chances of my youngest getting in this year if my other 2 are offered a place? Does he then "go up" on the waiting list for this year!?! All very confusing stuff!!! I think if we manage to get all 3 kids into 1 school,that will decide for us but I have to say I have not read one bad thing aboutBSAK so really wanted to know if this school is worth the effort of finding my youngest a nursery for a year then changing him again the next year. That will be a lot of changes for such a little man! Do you happen to know when BSAK start offering places? Is it as and when kids leave? Thanks again,sorry if I sound all over the place,have lots on my mind!!!
4747
Posts
EW MASTER
Latest post on 20 April 2013 - 21:07
Hello ladies, We are moving from dubai to Abu Dhabi in the summer and would like to know your opinions on a few school issues. We have 3 kids. 1 has been offered a place at bcad and the other 2 quite high on the waiting list. And, at BSAK , my youngest has been offered a place in sept 2014 for FS2 which puts my other 2 at about 3rd on the waiting list for this coming September! Both schools have assured us the kids will get in this September but I feel quite nervous about the move without a confirmation of a school place. Also, do any of you know of any nurseries near BSAK for my youngest? And last thing........if we're lucky to be offered both schools, which one would you go for? Hope this all makes sense! TIA fs2 is one of the most difficult years to get into, and yes the other kids will go up the list. but you dont say for which years??? personally i would go for bsak, as its an established school and is a non profit school. bcad is a private indpendant english school, so there is an admission test to get into it, which isnt difficult, but they will push your child a lot more so if your child is ok with that then fine, but as its only in its second year, they are still establishing and so they will not be up to speed with everything like bsak is for eg. you havent said which school you are in dubai? also bcad is much more expensive too. you will find that people sometimes dont get a place until a few days before term starts, or they will go into one school and then switch within the first week because there preferred school doesnt come up. bsak is usually starting earlier than aldar schools, dont know what bcad do but i think its after bsak, so you can always swap but of course you will have to pay for the place. i dont understand though you said that bsak have given you a place for 2014, they usually only offer places if you apply in the jan/feb for the following september, so not for 2 academic years, you have to apply again in the year before etc. they usually will give out places to kids that are already in the schooling system here before people from abroad. imo i would go for bsak over bcad. but then again sometimes you dont have a choice. bsak places are like hens teeth. also you will appreciate the brand new facilities that bsak have just built and yes bcad is new so they are new too.