7 tips to tackle rising school fees in your global mobility program

Last month, our sister-site expatfinder.com published their International School Fees Survey 2017, an update of their annual report, which studied the pricing and availability of 1,576 schools in 117 countries across the globe. The study discovered that although prices are continuing to rise in nearly all of the regions looked at around the world; there are still some more affordable options available if you know where to look.

The Increasing Burden of International Schooling

When planning global relocations for their employees in the past, companies have tended towards either partially or entirely covering the education costs. Although, this is often no longer the case, particularly since some schools are charging nearly US$90k per child per annum. As the tuition fees and other compulsory costs for international schools around the world increase year after year, businesses will be less inclined to cover these significant expenses.

In fact, this year has seen an increase in tuition fees of 2% across the globe, with some continents and countries significantly exceeding this number. For example, the American and Asia – Pacific regions saw price increases of 6% and 7%, respectively. With costs of living increasing all over the world, and workforces becoming more globally mobile, we can expect tuition fees to be consistently trending upwards.

In response to the increased outlays for those with children, some companies are coming up with ingenious ways to reduce the financial burden for both their business and employees. As a global mobility professional, you are always looking to make relocations more efficient and cost-effective for both the company and assignees. Let us take you through Global Mobility Insider’s top seven tips for global mobility managers relocating those with children.

1 – Look Local

Often overlooked by many during the relocation process, local schools can sometimes offer immense value for money when it comes to education all over the globe. Although these may not be an option in some countries due to language barriers and quality concerns, they should always be considered where possible for the ultimate in cost saving. 

“More companies should adopt a procedure where if local schooling is adequate and available, then this should be considered, instead of searching for international schools at the start. A tailored approach may be applied, where educational assistance is coupled with a cultural assessment, to recommend the most suitable school regarding compatibility with the assignee’s children and the overall relocation budget. This… …could result in cost savings for the company and a seamless educational transition for the employee’s children.”

Naren Damodaran – Executive/Senior Global Mobility Professional, CGI Group. 

2- Scrutinize Schooling Systems

Although all come under the broad umbrella of ‘international school’, there are other systems of school, either based on a language, or a national curriculum, which are available in addition to the generic offerings. It may be surprising, but some of these can offer highly significant savings over others.

From looking at the survey data, it rapidly becomes apparent that it is Australian schools which are the most expensive, followed by American and British systems. French schools, however, can offer huge savings, with a median yearly cost of only US$7,019, less than one-third the price of Australian schools, and less than half that of generic internationals schools. 

“Expat parents need first to understand what type of education their children need instead of going with ‘brand name’ international schools they would like their child to attend. Because the teaching methods differ from every school, it is important to find a school that suits a child’s learning needs and personality even if that means that siblings may attend separate schools.”

Evon Estrop – Managing Director, CS Mobility, Singapore 

3 – Consider the Country

It may seem obvious, but when organising global relocations for your business, you should take into account the family situation as a whole. If two members of staff with similar skillsets are going to be sent on assignment to Austria and Madagascar, but one of the assignees has three children, it would be prudent to seriously consider sending them to the latter, as it could represent a saving of around US$71,424 a year on education costs alone. 

4 – Search for Subsidies

Many of the schools surveyed for the report offered subsidies for students from the origin country of the school. For example, German language international schools may offer significant reductions in costs for students who have moved from Germany. In addition to these nationality-based subsidies from schools, some government embassies are willing to subsidise their citizen’s education in their new home. 

“…budget-conscious parents are now looking for ‘no-frills’ international schools, and thus we see new schools adapting their operations to meet this need; this is in addition to some international schools providing a waiver of registration fees or offering discounted fees for admission to siblings.”

Evon Estrop – Managing Director, CS Mobility, Singapore 

5 – Be Cautious of Corporate Rates

Some schools have begun to introduce corporate rates for companies who pay for their employee children to attend international school while on assignment. These fees, higher than the standard costs, are intended to ensure that businesses are not rinsing the school of available places while providing to the ongoing upkeep and quality of the institution. These increased fees for companies also commonly act to keep costs down for the rest of the families attending the school. If you often relocate members of staff to the same area, it would be prudent to contact local schools to see if you can reach a deal over fees for repeat business. 

“Companies do not have a choice but to react to the rising costs of international school fees. While assigning Expatriates with families with children of school age into Switzerland, you simply cannot convince the assignee to relocate unless the proper education for their children is ensured.”

Chris Debner – Global mobility expert, and Founder and Managing Director of Chris Debner Strategic Global Mobility Advisory 

6 – Set up a School

If all else fails, and the costs of educating the offspring of many assignees are mounting up for your company, it may be worth biting the bullet and setting up your own school in a popular region for your workers. Although this may seem like a drastic step to take, it is becoming a more and more attractive option for corporations which repeatedly move their employees around the globe. This investment, although significant, allows businesses to ensure employees that their children will receive a high quality of education, wherever they are in the world. These institutions may even let in children from the outside area to cover costs, and in some cases, even generate extra revenue for the company. 

“MLF creates ‘corporate schools’ intended for the schooling of (mainly French) expatriate executives’ children, where there are not currently any institutions offering a French-backed curriculum program. Thus, depending on the location of the corporation, the school can be isolated in a company campus or a town. The current trend is for corporate schools to be hosted by international schools with which MLF signs a hybrid system agreement.”

Maxime Michel, Corporate School Project Manager for Mission Laïque Française 

7 – Nurturing Networks

Our Last tip will not help you reduce costs per say, but may help your business to come to terms with the massive costs associated with relocating employees with children. Although tuition fees are expensive and are only going to get worse, you must remember that it is not only the child who benefits from attending an international school; there are other significant advantages, though they may not be obvious at first glance. One such advantage is the opportunity for parents to meet others in similar situations and become more entrenched in the community, helping with integration and settling into their new home. Also consider the type of parents whose children will already be in attendance at the school, as parent-parent networking could yield significant benefits for both the assignee and the company as a whole.   

“One aspect that should not be forgotten is a positive collateral aspect of providing international schooling. It serves as a very good community for the expat spouses to meet other expats, which often helps the integration and well-being in a country.”

Chris Debner – Global mobility expert, and Founder and Managing Director of Chris Debner Strategic Global Mobility Advisory 

NOTES:

All school fees data was taken from the relevant schools’ websites or kindly provided by the schools themselves.

All yearly school fee costs were calculated as the median yearly cost, including tuition fees; application, admission and enrolment; registration and re-enrolment; building and capital development; one meal a day; school uniforms; and exams.

All prices are displayed in USD.