Family C
Mr & Mrs B, a Hong Kong family living in Beijing, contacted us in Aug 2015 when they got word that they’d be moving back to Hong Kong in Summer 2016.
Their two boys – N & H – were aged 3 (H) and 5 (N) at the time, both attending an international school in Beijing and both holding US passports.
The family were keen to have the boys in a bilingual school. However, their English language proficiency was not strong, and their Chinese literacy was not strong.
Parents came to HK twice before their move. On both visits, we arranged private meetings with principals and admissions staff. These meetings allowed the parents to make an informed decision on whether the school was a fit for their family. For some schools, they proceeded to submit applications; for others, they decided not to.
The parents’ top choice school – School X, a bilingual school – invited both boys for assessment. H was accepted whilst N was not, due to lack of English language proficiency.
We quickly lined up other assessments for N. At the same time, we discussed with School X the strategy to have N reapply and have another chance for assessment later in the year. N would enjoy sibling priority as soon as H started the school.
N was accepted into two schools – School A and School Y. Since School Y was a 5 minute walk from School X, this was their choice. School Y was a pure English language environment for N. Since this was the area in which he needed to improve, it made sense. The parents supplemented with Chinese tuition.
N had a further assessment at School Y in July and, again, did not pass.
Family B moved to HK in Aug 2016 and the boys started at their respective schools. In October, Mr & Mrs B revisited the idea of having N reapply to School Y. We checked and advised them to resubmit an application. We were able to arrange for N to attend an interview one week later. Two days later, the offer came. N will start at School Y in Dec 2016.