International Schools in Phuket

Anyone that has children and is considering a move to Phuket will be concerned about their children’s education and what is available in Phuket. If Schooling is the deciding factor of your move then you do not need to worry. Phuket hosts many different quality international schools to choose from throughout the island.

With the ever-growing amount of Expats that have decided to make Phuket their home, there’s been an increasing demand for International schooling in Phuket. Over the past decade, the options for International schooling has grown significantly. All ages of children are well catered for, from 18 months to 18 years.

The Phuket International Schools welcome students from all nationalities and the curricula cover the most in-demand subject. These are British (A Levels), Chinese (Mandarin), American (SAT), International (IB), and the French National Curriculum. There is also language instruction available for students that speak the native languages of Korean, Spanish and Russian to name a few.

The Phuket International Schools also give out instructions in the native Thai Language and also educate their students on the many wonderful things from Thailands history and culture.

Most of the International Schools in Phuket are located around the southern areas, even more so in Chalong. There are of course a few exceptions such as the United World College (UWC) and British International School (BIS). The UWC is located on the northeast of the island, close to the airport, whereas the BIS is located in central Phuket in the Kow Keaw area.

This article itself will focus on secondary education in Phuket, but a lot of these schools also offer pre-schooling and kindergarten options. We’ve also recently done a small article on pre-schools and kindergarten in Phuket, you can read it by clicking the link below.

Phuket Kindergartens and Pre-Schools

International School of Phuket (ISP)

Dating back to 2008, the ISP has been a prominent school in Phuket and parents whose children attend have formed a close-knit community. It’s built on 10 Rai of land and the school boasts a lot of playgrounds and green areas for the children to enjoy. Most importantly, the school is gained a great reputation for providing its students with quality education.

Kids can start at the ISP from as young as 2 years old and there is a great mix of different nationalities. The ISP offers the Cambridge Program and features a specialist Russian department and a solid French curriculum also.

The ISP is located in Chalong, just opposite the Makro and just alongside the stunning Coconut Grove.

Berda Claude International School – BCIS

One of the more recent additions to the Chalong district is the BCIS. It’s not hard to see why the enrolment at the BCIS is expanding rapidly as they provide nothing but high standards of excellence, both the French National curriculum and English Cambridge curriculum, and also the pricing is reasonable for such a good school.

The school itself offers an eco-friendly environment and they’ve put an impressive amount of effort into attention to detail. With no costs spared, the school grounds are kept green and in harmony with its natural surroundings. It’s truly a multicultural environment and the BCIS has a diverse array of students that represent over 45 nationalities.

You’ll find the BCIS near the TOT Office on Chaofa Road West, roughly 2km down the road as you head towards Chaofa Road East. It’s a great place for kids to learn, play, enjoy and make friends as they begin their schooling journey.

Oak Meadow International School

The Oak Meadow International School is an American curriculum school located in Prangtong Village. This is on Khwang Road which joins Chaofa Road East And West about halfway up, close to the We Café. You could consider this area as the southern part of Phuket Town.

The school itself is fairly new and offers good quality education for the students and a nice school set up. The school has a keen focus on helping its students reach their maximum potential through nurture and inspiration. They want their students to be positive contributors to the society around them and help them to focus on setting and achieving life goals and dreams.

The school fees are fairly competitive and the standards of the school, in general, seem to be fairly high.

Quality School International of Phuket (QSI)

The QSI features the American curriculum and is certainly one of the most established international schools in Phuket. It’s been offering high-quality education for all ages of students from elementary to secondary students and has been since 2000. QSI is surrounded by natural beauty and is located between the big Tesco and the Samkong Intersection on the Bypass Road.

The school has always remained warm and welcoming to students and parents and has always been well run. Something you would expect from such a well established international school. They’re continuously succeeded in providing an ideal learning environment for children to learn, grow and enjoy their school years.

QSI accepts children starting from age 3 years and up to 18 years old. It has full accreditation from the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (MSA) and also has an affiliation with the Department of State Office of Overseas Schools (OAS).

QSI accepts children as young as 3 years old, right the way up to 18 years old. It is fully accredited by The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (MSA) and is affiliated with The Department of State Office of Overseas Schools (OAS).

Kajonkiet International School (KIS)

Kajonkiet is one of the most successful groups of schools that have opened up in Phuket, with Kajonkiet International School Phuket (KIS) being the first of its group to target the international market. The KIS uses the English curriculum and has all of its classes taught in the English language. Children from ages 2 to 18 can be enrolled into the KIS modern complex. The school is located in the valley of Kathu and is spread over 15 Rai of land.

The school buildings have a fantastic design and with their lush tropical grounds and surroundings, the KIS is an incredibly pleasant place for the students to play, make friends, and learn. Superb sports facilities are available at KIS with plenty of indoor and outdoor sports being practised daily in their amazing sports hall. These include swimming and basketball.

HeadStart International School

HeadStart is renowned across the island for its incredibly high standards of education and pass rates amongst the students that attend. It rapidly became one of the most successful of all of the international schools that opened in Phuket because of this. The school takes education incredibly seriously and it’s reflected in the results of the students.

The original HeadStart building was located just a few hundred metres from the Central Festival shopping centre and has since expanded its grounds and moved into a new campus located nearby. It’s easy to access as it’s on the new road that links the back of Central Festival to Chaofa Road West, just by the Shell gas station.

Pupils are aged between 2 to 18 years old and the school follows the English curriculum and the Cambridge program. The school has over 180 staff working there with roughly 650 students that represent over 44 different countries.

British International School Phuket (BISP)

The British International School (BISP) is perhaps the most well known international school in Phuket and has been present on the island since 1996, albeit under a different name at that time. It’s by far the largest international school that Phuket has to offer and has superb learning facilities and grounds that spread over 44 acres. Boarding facilities are also available at the BISp and the accommodation is exceptional.

The standard of education at the BISP is on par with the facilities available, simply put – world-class. You can guess by the name that the English curriculum is followed but they also offer the Swiss-based International Baccalaureate Diploma Program.

There are approximately 870 students that attend the BISP, from 45 different nationalities. 60% of the highly qualified and trained staff are also from overseas. The school itself adheres to nothing but the highest international standards and also has externally assessed programs. For example, there is one through the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts.

By having such a variety of different nationalities teaching at the BISP, the chance for students being able to learn foreign languages taught by someone that speaks it as their native language is high. English, Thai, Russian, French, Spanish, Korean and Mandarin are taught at the school.

With 44 acres of grounds to play with, you would expect (and rightly so) the sports facilities to be amazing. There are two swimming pools available to the students, with one being an Olympic size pool. The school also have a highly competitive swimming team and there are also numerous football pitches available.

It’s a top-notch school but also has top-notch prices, which are to be expected.

United World College (UWC)

Last but not least we have the UWC. With its proximity to the airport, this school is certainly a good prospect for families that have decided on property in the north of the island. The UWC is fortunate to be located adjacent to the Thanyapura which is one of the finest sports facilities that Phuket has to offer, even going so far as to say the entire of Thailand.

The UWC is part of a larger group of schools, with 17 being spread across four continents. That’s about 9,500 students educated across the globe. Formerly named the Phuket International Academy, the UWC offers the renowned International Baccalaureate curriculum to its students. Ages from as young as 18 months are welcome to enrol, with the complete curriculum finishing at 18 years of age.

The surroundings of the UWC make it a simply amazing place to learn, grow and flourish and with students coming from 65 different nationalities, it truly is a place for a child to explore and experience other cultures, especially the Thai culture, as they learn.

With its superb sports and fitness facilities, along with its close location to a Health and Wellness centre, the school can easily provide a great balance between both physical and mental education. Children that are introduced to mindfulness at a younger age will certainly benefit from it throughout their life, helping them to become successful adults with a healthy emotional balance.

The UWC continues to focus its teaching of students with different ways to learn and grow with a balanced mind, healthy body and good heart.

Phuket School Summary

While we’ve listed this blog in our Property Guide section, it’s clear to see that it’s about Schooling and not finding that dream home. But we feel it’s important to be educated on the surrounding amenities as they will play a large part in any property purchase.

There is a good variety of schools available on the island that suit all budgets without having to compromise too much on education standards, so wherever you choose to purchase property in Phuket, a good school is not far away.