Many middle-class parents are concerned that they will be unable to send their children to an international school during the long voyage. However, some foreign schools have "joined hands" with banks in order to share this issue with parents.
The right choice to "invest" in long-term learning
Indeed, many parents believe that their children would thrive in the unique and modern educational atmosphere of an international school. However, many middle-class parents objected to this option.
Ms. Phan Tam, the parent of a grade 2 children at Albert Einstein School (Binh Chanh District, Ho Chi Minh City), said: “In the past when my child was about to enter grade 1, my wife and I were very confused in choosing a school for our child. Going to a public school has high competitive pressure, and they are quite shy, so it's definitely not suitable. There are no private schools in the neighborhood of the residence that teach the Ministry of Education and Training's program. About international schools, we are afraid of not being able to follow for a long time because my husband and I are only average in income.” It took them half a year to solve each concern.
First, in the international school segment, she chose a school with a tuition fee of around 200 million VND/year. Next, when children go to secondary school, the tuition fee will definitely increase gradually, so they have to find a school that has a tuition support program. After all, she found the Albert Einstein School that offered a bilingual program, met the tuition requirements and was in the vicinity of their home.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Kieu Oanh, General Director of Khoi Nguyen Education (KNE), the investor of the Canadian International School System (CISS), said: “When choosing a school for their children, parents learn to make the suitable choice with family objectives based on many factors. In addition to the educational philosophy, the quality of the school's education, and the tuition fee is equally important to be able to go on a long journey. For example, CISS 2009 has offered financial support solutions for parents with the program "Founding Parents", "Study Discount", or "Special Membership", etc.
After the pandemic, tuition does not rise but instead falls
According to Ms. Oanh, this year's "Tuition Companionship" is the largest financial support program ever of the CISS System to support parents to overcome difficulties caused by COVID-19. Accordingly, parents can pay tuition fees monthly through the bank, instead of paying once a year or two terms as before. Parents are entitled to unsecured loans of up to 900 million VND to pay for the preferential tuition package, with a maximum loan term of up to 5 years. The interest on this loan will be paid in full by the school on behalf of the parents. As a result, it becomes easier for children to attend an international school, even for middle-income parents who just need to be stable.
She did a simple calculation for member schools such as Albert Einstein School (AES), a parent participating in the program starting at grade 1 only pays about 7 million VND/month; For a bilingual program at the Bilingual Canadian International School (BCIS), the monthly payment is about 13-15 million VND. And the Canadian International School (CIS) is the most advanced segment, studying entirely in English with the Ontario Baccalaureate (Canada) and International Baccalaureate (IB) programs, the average payment for 5 years is about 25 million VND/month.
Accompanying with CISS, Ms. Le Thi My Tho - Director of Corporate Marketing Center at Shinhan Bank, also said that when parents complete the procedure for the "Tuition Companionship" program, the maximum disbursement time is 3 days. There are 2 forms of tuition package funding, which the school pays interest on behalf. One is unsecured, the maximum loan amount is up to 900 million VND and the maximum loan period is within 5 years. Second, there is no limit on the loan limit for a mortgage so that you can pack your tuition fees for a long year.
For years, the Canadian International School System has maintained its commitment not to increase tuition fees for existing parents. This time, with the "Tuition Companionship" program, existing parents also have the opportunity to reduce tuition fees. The reason is that with the way the school pays the interest instead and the parents split the tuition fee to pay each month, the tuition fee has been reduced by 30-40% compared to the previous form of annual tuition payment.