International and bilingual schools

Categories

• Full international schools — admit only foreign passport holders or Hong Kong/Macau/Taiwan residents. Curriculum: IB, IGCSE+A-level, AP, or national curricula (American, British, Australian, German, French, Japanese). Tuition tier-1: ¥250,000–¥350,000 per year per child.
• Bilingual private schools — admit Chinese and foreign students. Curriculum is typically a hybrid Chinese-international. Tuition: ¥80,000–¥200,000 per year.
• Public schools — accept foreign children with valid residence in some cities and districts. Free or near-free tuition. Mandarin medium. Suited to families committed to Chinese language and prepared for a different educational style.
• Homeschooling — possible but with administrative friction; not common.

Where the international school clusters are

• Beijing: Shunyi (the long-established expat suburb), Chaoyang central district, Shunyi Pinggu side.
• Shanghai: Pudong (Lin Feng / Long Hua / Jinqiao), Hongqiao west side, Minhang.
• Shenzhen: Shekou (the historic expat zone), Futian, Bao'an.
• Hangzhou: Binjiang and the Yuhang innovation district.
• Guangzhou: Tianhe and Panyu south.
• Suzhou: SIP industrial park has a cluster of bilingual schools.

Hong Kong

Hong Kong has its own dense international and ESF (English Schools Foundation) market — the application process is highly competitive and starts 12+ months in advance.

Application timeline

• Most international schools admit in August/September; applications close December–February for the next academic year.
• Apply to 2–3 schools as a portfolio.
• Sibling priority is meaningful at most schools.
• Standardised tests for older children (MAP, ISEE) are the norm.
• Interviews — yes, even for primary-age children — are part of most processes.

Choosing

The standard advice: visit, ask current parents at the school gate, check IB / A-level / AP results in published reports, ask about teacher retention rates (a meaningful indicator of school quality), confirm what the school's transition support looks like for your child's specific stage.

We don't recommend specific schools; the right choice depends heavily on the child, family priorities and current school cohorts.