School portraits · Doha
Not Until September
A father with a January posting, a Year 10 son who refused to move, and a school that would take him only at the start of the year.
From a November phone call to the following AugustRead the story
School life, between the linesBy NewSchoolRun
Notes from the School Gates
School stories, admissions adventures, and the things parents talk about on the way home.
School portraits · Abu Dhabi
Two Uniforms and a Vacancy
A mother from Aberdeen, a Year 3 boy on the BSAK waiting list, and the second school she was told to keep warm just in case.
From a summer application to an October phone callRead the story
School portraits · Muscat
Fourteen Days on the Fridge
An offer from British School Muscat, a reservation fee due in fourteen days, and a contract that had been “with legal” for six weeks.
Fourteen days in a Cardiff kitchen, then one August in MuscatRead the story
School portraits · Riyadh
The Lease Before the Campus
A British father who rented a villa near the wrong BISR, a Year 9 daughter allocated to Al Waha, and a map he read one week too late.
The summer before a September startRead the story
School portraits · Jeddah
The Ten Per Cent Child
A third child, a published sibling discount, and a four-year-old in Jeddah who learned exactly what she was worth.
One school year, August invoice to April invoiceRead the story
School portraits · Ho Chi Minh City
Three Gates, One Car
Three children at three Thao Dien campuses of the same school, one mother, one car, and the driver who solved the morning.
The first fortnight of an August termRead the story
School portraits · Abu Dhabi
Very Good Is Two Above Good
A father near Khalifa Park, two inspection reports from two different frameworks, and a daughter who had her own rating scale.
The six weeks before a Year 4 startRead the story
School portraits · Bangkok
The Six-Forty Rehearsal
A Swedish mother who would not sign a Bangkok lease until she had done the Bang Na school run for real, child included.
One August, before the lease was signedRead the story
School portraits · Doha
Ten School Days
A Scottish accountant in Doha, a posting nobody would confirm, and the one deadline in his life that kept its word.
Semester one, the first eleven school daysRead the story
School portraits · Tokyo
The Lease Before the Bus Map
An American family who signed a Tokyo lease for a bakery, and only then opened the school’s bus map.
One lease, one bus stop, the first month of a Tokyo AugustRead the story
School portraits · Riyadh
The One-Time Fees
An American father in a Riyadh hotel room, a relocation package that covered tuition, and the SAR 40,212 that was not tuition.
Three weeks between a job offer and a Grade 9 startRead the story
School portraits · Kuala Lumpur
A House Between Two Schools
Two campuses, two children, two highlighters, and a father who was determined to solve Kuala Lumpur with a map.
One house hunt, July to the following springRead the story