Hi,

We are in the process of deciding the education options for our child and would like to know what costs parents bear apart from the tution fees in case the child goes to an international school like St. Mary, TIS, Nishimachi, JIS .
We plan on commute by train and our child would take lunch from home.
The possible costs I can think of Uniform, Field trip costs(are these optional?), textbook costs(are these supplied by school?),
annual raffle costs(I have seen many parents buy all the raffle tickets which schools ask children to sell) what do each of these cost the parents?

Are there any other costs which are not mentioned in the prospectus which are mailed with the School Application forms?

Any info appreciated.

Thanks, Rachel
Email address: irwogg@hotmail.com

I imagine different school raffles are set up differently, but the raffle tickets at New International School this year cost Y300 each, and we were given a set of 10 with a request form for more if we want to buy/sell more. The Carnival committee set the price. This committe is made up only of parents.

Additional costs have been:
Fieldtrips -- ranging from Y1000 to Y5000, not really optional but one was refunded when unable to attend due to illness
Uniform -- different mothers spend more if they get everything in twos or threes but about Y40,000
Tai kwon do uniform -- Y8000
Packed lunch every day -- Y2-300
Transportation fares -- Y300 every day
Time off from work to attend parent/teacher conferences/open houses and other events -- about Y20,000
Pick-up person for child still too young to go alone -- anywere from Y1000 to Y3000 per day depending on what arrangement you are able to make
Taxis when needed -- depends on distance

Basically there is a lot of pressure on the school to try to keep the costs down, but on the other hand there is reverse pressure to support the children's education in every way possible. It's a balancing act. I am dead against the uniforms for example (which are one huge maintanence headache), but I decided to bite the bullet on that one because of all the other perceived benefits.

Some of these costs would exist with local public school. And so far NewIS has not charged for books or supplies, which I think that local public schools do expect parents to buy in part. Local elementary schools have minimal uniforms in my ward (a hat and a badge), but in other parts this is different.

Basically the international school option is pricey and a big sacrifice. I dare say my kid will never realize what I'm going through for her sake! On top of it I still have the headache of trying to communicate within the Japanese system because my daughter is enrolled in the after-school program on the local level. And there are various fees involved there too!

I also see very different levels of networking among the parents from what I had expected. I thought we would quickly figure out who lived closely together and work on ways to help each other out, but that has not been the case. There are some mothers/fathers who network and some who don't. Cooperation levels vary hugely based on time, need, personality, ability to communicate (not all mothers speak English or even Japanse), culture and age of child.

Hello, Cornelia,
Thank you for spelling out the expenses. It really helps. Are there such things as used uniforms available?
My two homeschoolers will be attending NewIS from September. I can hardly believe it and neither can they. I don't think we are really psychologically prepared for the reality of being up at 5:00 and them on the train at 6:20am!
It will be a MAJOR change for us all.
I noticed loafers on sale in March, but as I expect their feet to grow a bit more, I want to put off school shoes until August! The shoe store said I can special order the leather loafers. I considered plastic, but with the 12 hour day in store, I thought the leather would breathe better and be more comfortable.
Any more parental tips on penny-pinching would be greatly appreciated. People tell me, "Oh, you'll have more time for yourself now."
I don't think so. It'll be "more time to work,now."
Best of luck!
Amy

Well, there is the as yet unused "Uniforms - Recycling" discussion under the Classifieds section at:
http://www.tokyowithkids.com/discussions/messages/3/837.html

Someone asked me about reduced tuition for 2nd and 3rd children from the same family, and I think the same question was raised a couple of years ago in the "Education Options" discussion. I had heard vague reports but nothing concrete. Well, clearly stated on their website, New International School has a significant reduction for additional children from the same household (about 30%). However their opening year tuition of 1.2 million has been raised to 1.7 million for their 3rd year starting September 2003. They also promised that the tuition started with would be the tuition throughout the time spent at the school (possibly with a small increase to compensate for inflation -- but that increase has not been implemented thus far). So parents who started in 2001 have their tuitions fixed at the 2001 rate.

If anyone knows of similar reductions for additional children at other schools, please let us all know!

HJIS Introduction and Summer School Program

Horizon Japan International School (HJIS) is a new elementary school (K-6) that opened its doors in April 2003. We are one of three international schools in Yokohama city, which have been accredited by the Kanagawa Prefectual Government and have numerous affiliates throughout the world. Our team of educators and consultants has been gathered from around the globe and have all played an integral role in developing our international curriculum. With an affordable fee structure, HJIS will best match the expectations of the foreign community who are planning to reside long term in Japan. The school is also open to Japanese families who want to send their children to international schools. Come and see what we have to offer. For further information regarding the programs offered at HJIS do not hesitate to contact us at:
Horizon Japan International School (HJIS)
1-33-6 Higashi Terao, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama 230-0077 Japan
Tel: 045-584-1945
Fax: 045-584-1946
e-mail: info@horizon.ac.jp
URL: www.horizon.ac.jp

HJIS Summer School 2003

The Horizon Japan International School summer English program is designed for students who wish to increase their proficiency is English, reading and conversation. Classes will be activity based and enhance the learning of English.

Term 1: July 21-July 25
Term 2: July 26-July 31 (no school on July 27)

Time:
Gr. K-2 9:00 am-12:00 pm
Gr. 3-6 13:00 pm-16:00 pm

Location: HJIS �E1-33-6 Higashi Terao, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama

Program Fee:
30, 000 yen (per term); 2nd child 27, 000 (per term)
For 2 Terms: 58, 000 yen; 2nd child 55, 000 yen
Application fee: 2, 500 yen

Application Deadline: July 4, 2003

Contact Information:
Tel: 045-584-1942
Fax: 045-584-1946
e-mail: admissions@horizon.ac.jp
URL: www.horizon.ac.jp

A lot of people think that public schooling is "free" which of course it is not. It's just that the money doesn't come directly out of parents' pocket. Here is an interesting article on per pupil spending and results, in the USA. It's an eye-opener.
Best And Worst School Districts For The Buck
By Christina Settimi, Forbes.com
July 7, 2007