Parent's Review of AICS Amsterdam in Amsterdam, Netherlands

What is the name of your child's school? (Please report on one school per survey.)

AICS Amsterdam

In what town or city is this school located?

Amsterdam

How would you describe this school? (i.e. American, British, International, Local, etc.)

International school

What grade levels are represented at this school?

1 - 12

How do most children get to school everyday? (bus, train, walk, etc.)

Bike, walk, tram, bus, train, car

How would you describe the facilities at this school? What extra-curricular activities are available?

Good. At primary level there is a wide variety of after school clubs held on the school premises. At high school level there are very few clubs. The outside play area is small (as is the case with most schools in Amsterdam) and is separated into junior playground and senior playground. Both primary & high school kids walk to a nearby facility for weekly sports / PE activities - the same facility used by the British International school. A chartered bus takes primary children weekly out to the school tuin (garden) in the south of Amstelveen - always a highlight of the school calendar during spring & autumn/fall terms. And the children go by bus to ice skating lessons in Amsterdam Oost during the winter term. There are various opportunities for the children to go away on study trips (overnight or 4-5 days) depending on the year group.

What has this school done to help your child transition from the curriculum in your home country into the curriculum in your new country? Are there programs to prepare your child for repatriation?

We are not aware of any transition programmes at primary school level and none were needed. At high school level our child was allocated extra time with a mentor to help transition into the MYP programme.

How would you describe the social activities available for parents through this school? Are there parent-teacher organizations?

The "Melting Pot' is a small hub of parents who form the social committee responsible for a range of child focused activities throughout the year. They also run regular events and social activities for parents. Participation is voluntary but many parent events are well attended. The Melting Pot group provides funding for many of these social events & activities. Not aware of parent-teacher organisations however interaction with teachers is frequent and welcomed. Parents are welcome in the school and invited to participate with school trips.

What advice would you give to someone considering enrolling their child in this school?

Enrol in this school . Likely you will be waitlisted but it is worth being persistent and keeping in touch with the school. Siblings stand a higher chance of getting in to the school. In response to some of the other comments I have read from previous correspondents I can tell you that many of the criticisms of AICS (no parking lot, small playground, converted office building for the school campus) are common to all schools in Amsterdam. In fact, very few schools here have large outside play areas due to lack of space (and the weather!) This is not a problem exclusive to AICS. There is a large parking lot for bikes at the school. But a parking lot for cars? No. Most people walk, bike, tram, bus or Metro to the school. Or they bring their kid to school by car and drop them off in the street. Most of the children at AICS are english speaking and many are multi-lingual. There are also a number of local dutch kids amongst the students. AICS offers an affordable international education within an english language curriculum. It is Dutch run & subsidised by the Dutch government. Fees are closer to E6000 instead of E20-30,000. We have found AICS to be a friendly and welcoming school. The teaching faculty seem to be supportive, nurturing and genuinely interested in the well-being of the students. The school building is a converted office building and it is bursting at the seams due to the increasing student numbers. There are plans to move to a larger, purpose built facility within the next few years. AICS has long waitlists for some year groups and there are intake interviews for every child - this is standard procedure. If you are lucky enough to get a space for your child we can highly recommend AICS as a brilliant primary school. And a high school with a challenging IB programme which keep evolving and improving. Recommended!

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