Anyone know of the British Vietnamese Inter school of HCMC/Hanoi?

Caution: Ha Noi can get as cold as +10C; TP HCM is always nice and warm! And our water doesn't have arsenic in it.

OneManArmy wrote:

I am wondering about this school.I plan to move to Vietnam soon as a Primary Teacher. Is this a good school to work at?

You means this school http://www.bisvietnam.com/ huh? As my ex-boss said that BIS is a very good school cuz she have children study there.

Erm, it's not the British International School, it is the British Vietnamese International School. It is a bilingual branch of the British international school that does 50% english, 50% Vietnamese.

It's a new school, right? I did not see many comments about BVIS at some popular website forums. Anyway, if u consider HCM or Hanoi branch, i recommend u HCM becuz it's nice and warm in the South (like Jaitch said above)...and u will like it.

OneManArmy wrote:

Erm, it's not the British International School, it is the British Vietnamese International School. It is a bilingual branch of the British international school that does 50% english, 50% Vietnamese.

I participate in an annual schooled survey, the survey members are parents and the viewpoints are across the spectrum. We use all manner of tactics to dtermine the answers to our questions.

Remember, these are commercial, for profit schools with the profits being the prime goal in many cases. Your money, their pockets.

Ha Noi has always been a neglected city as far as Foreign schools are concerned, although some are now filling the void, and reaping the profits.

Ant school/system based in Singapore should be regarded with great suspicion. Cognita, a UK venture capital project, hides behind a Singapore regional office and owns three profit centres here in VietNam.

Accreditation
Accreditation means little. Some even accreditation when in actual fact they have none.

Other 'accreditation' agencies are little more than PR outfits offering lots of logo's, lip-flap and doing nothing about ensuring standards.

Fees
Assuming you are happy with paying up to USD$20,000 a year, you won't mind paying for the extras, either.

Fee's for admission (they refuse very few - it's the money, you know), additional fees for registering, demands for payment in USD$ (illegal) ONLY PAYMENTS IN DONG)

School dictated uniforms, from a designated supplier. Computers of a designated type/OS from a recommended supplier. Some schools actually supply computers. Specified shoe styles (no practical flip-flops [even leather]), backpacks without endorsements or decorations. Mandatory tie/neck wear.

The auxiliary fees can mount up to a significant surcharge.

Then some offer 'discounts' for prepayments (no interest), deductions for fee refunds caused by parental re-assignment.

The VN government has little to no input in to the running/performance of the schools as most of the students are Foreign and, presumably, the parents care.

The most telling comment I heard from a parent was a VNese father who explained that he moved his children from a Vietnamese Public School to a international commercial school because the Vietnamese school "worked his children too hard"!

Foreigners can't attend VNese schools, unless one parent has citizenship.

BIS/BVIS
This school has good reports from both parents and our own investigations.