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Education dilema, please help!!
Firstly Hi, new to this forum! and bit of a noob here so please forgive my ignorance.
I am in need to some guidance from those who may have had similar experiences and can share some lessons and guidance before I make s decision I and my children regret. In a nutshell I may have the opportunity to go on expat assignment with my company (good package) for 4-5 years to Houston. I am married with 3 boys 13, 15 and 17. I suspect the company will have some flexibility to when they family joins me and will pay for private education up to the age of 19. Now if I delay my family arrival to June 2017 my eldest will have completed his A levels. What type of college / school should he seek to get in then? What happens if say for example I don't complete the full 4 years out there, assuming degree courses are 4 years in the US, would he be allowed to stay in the US to finish his education? What would he / I need to do to ensure that? My middle son will have just completed his GCSE's in June 2017. Again so what / where would he go next? I assume he would do something A level equivalent for 2 years? Then what... If he went to start his degree we potentially could be 2 years in to it when we return. Again what would be the options, could we leave him in the US for two years to finish his education there, or would we really mess his education up as he would be unlikely to continue his study in the UK due to the different courses. Would he be better coming back to the UK and doing his study here on his own.. I know my wife wouldn't be happy with that... My youngest same issue, we would be starting his GCSE equivalent in 2017, assume he would do something similar in the US then hopefully onto A level equivalent. Same worry if I come back even a few months before his exams how does that work? My kids education is a big worry but don't want to give up on this too early as I think it would be a fantastic life experience for us all and you cant ignore the financial benefit, but its not at any cost.... Is this doable or just a train wreck waiting to happen? Any advise would be so much appreciated, thanks!! |
Re: Education dilema, please help!!
Originally Posted by mooncat2016
(Post 11999964)
Now if I delay my family arrival to June 2017 my eldest will have completed his A levels. What type of college / school should he seek to get in then? What happens if say for example I don't complete the full 4 years out there, assuming degree courses are 4 years in the US, would he be allowed to stay in the US to finish his education? What would he / I need to do to ensure that?
My middle son will have just completed his GCSE's in June 2017. Again so what / where would he go next? I assume he would do something A level equivalent for 2 years? Then what... If he went to start his degree we potentially could be 2 years in to it when we return. My youngest same issue, we would be starting his GCSE equivalent in 2017, assume he would do something similar in the US then hopefully onto A level equivalent. No doubt other forum members will chime in, our experience with our (now 18 and 16 year old) has been the system has managed to integrate them pretty well, though our eldest should have fought his corner to get his GCSEs read into the record as a much higher GPA. |
Re: Education dilema, please help!!
If you don't complete your 4 years with the company ie. you leave, the company ends your contract, , then, unless you come up with another company that is prepared to arrange a work visa for you, you leave the US. Your stay in the US is determined by you remaining with the employer who sponsored your L1.
There is a rule about aging out at age 21 for L2 dependents, I understand. Something to think about for the 17 year old. Others with more info will be along. |
Re: Education dilema, please help!!
Originally Posted by SanDiegogirl
(Post 12000035)
If you don't complete your 4 years with the company ie. you leave, the company ends your contract, , then, unless you come up with another company that is prepared to arrange a work visa for you, you leave the US. Your stay in the US is determined by you remaining with the employer who sponsored your L1.
There is a rule about aging out at age 21 for L2 dependents, I understand. Something to think about for the 17 year old. Others with more info will be along. And aren't L2 dependents unable to work? So the kids won't be able to get summer jobs etc., which I understand has been difficult for the kids of a few folks on the forum. |
Re: Education dilema, please help!!
As others have said + as you specifically mentioned your company will pay for private schooling (you must be highly valued since private schooling for 3 children can reasonably be expected to cost anywhere from 30K to over a 100K per annum for all three). I would suggest contacting some of the private schools in the area you are considering and working with the admissions officer there on some of your more detailed specifics. They will more than likely be able to assist with many of your questions and think of others you may not have have thought of. Money or the potential thereof, has a tendency to create that kind of fluidity and willingness to assist.
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Re: Education dilema, please help!!
Correct - spouses on L2's can work but not dependent children.
Also, to respond to another posting, the company has offered to pay for private education up to age 19 - so not University? |
Re: Education dilema, please help!!
Originally Posted by mooncat2016
(Post 11999964)
Firstly Hi, new to this forum! and bit of a noob here so please forgive my ignorance.
I am in need to some guidance from those who may have had similar experiences and can share some lessons and guidance before I make s decision I and my children regret. In a nutshell I may have the opportunity to go on expat assignment with my company (good package) for 4-5 years to Houston. I am married with 3 boys 13, 15 and 17. I suspect the company will have some flexibility to when they family joins me and will pay for private education up to the age of 19. Now if I delay my family arrival to June 2017 my eldest will have completed his A levels. What type of college / school should he seek to get in then? What happens if say for example I don't complete the full 4 years out there, assuming degree courses are 4 years in the US, would he be allowed to stay in the US to finish his education? What would he / I need to do to ensure that? You won't have completed residency requirements for most of the universities in Texas. So he will be assessed as an out of state student for the first year. This is assuming you want him to go to college near you. I would seriously think about whether you want him to study in the UK or USA. Unless you all get green cards, once he is past 21 or finished in full time education he will have to leave the US. I would ask the company to sponsor you for green cards to mitigate this situation. Also, being an L1 doesn't usually entitle you to financial aid - whilst you may think that your income is too high anyway, it can be very nice if some money is given to help with university/college costs. If applying to college in Texas then your son may also have to fulfill all the Texas high school graduation requirements - probably have to take Health and US history My middle son will have just completed his GCSE's in June 2017. Again so what / where would he go next? I assume he would do something A level equivalent for 2 years? Then what... If he went to start his degree we potentially could be 2 years in to it when we return. Again what would be the options, could we leave him in the US for two years to finish his education there, or would we really mess his education up as he would be unlikely to continue his study in the UK due to the different courses. Would he be better coming back to the UK and doing his study here on his own.. I know my wife wouldn't be happy with that... As a previous poster said, you will need to contact schools to find out what their policy is in regard to out of district credit transfer. He will go into high school and will need credits to help him with graduation requirements and to boost his GPA. This is really only applicable if he's going to college in the US. At 15 he will enter 10th grade, which is the second year of high school, his peers will have already started pre-AP and AP courses and you'll need to speak to the school counsellors to see where you stand and what the best way to proceed is. If he's going to be 16 (I'm confused about all the ages you posted) then he'll be in his junior year. This is the year my daughter started from, she worked pretty much non-stop the first year to get credit by exam for her previous work and did 2 or 3 summer courses in order to fulfil Texas HS graduation requirements. My youngest same issue, we would be starting his GCSE equivalent in 2017, assume he would do something similar in the US then hopefully onto A level equivalent. Same worry if I come back even a few months before his exams how does that work? [I]I think I may have messed up the ages somewhat for your kids, you've given their ages now but you're moving next year? This youngest son will also be going into high school but at the beginning. Fewer issues here in that case.[/I] My kids education is a big worry but don't want to give up on this too early as I think it would be a fantastic life experience for us all and you cant ignore the financial benefit, but its not at any cost.... Is this doable or just a train wreck waiting to happen? Any advise would be so much appreciated, thanks!! 1 whether eldest son should go to Uni here or in the UK 2 whether green card sponsorship is on the cards or not - highly advisable to do this if eldest is going to Uni here. 3 entrance requirements to possible colleges here in the USA - contact a couple of international admissions offices at potential colleges. They were v helpful to my daughter 4 Schools - if public school (not private!) will accept out of district studies for GPA credit, which year your sons would be placed in and how the middle one would go about fulfilling graduation requirements. 5 Private schools or not? There are some posters from Houston here that I'm sure will chime with recommendations. If anything is not clear or raises more questions then ask away.... |
Re: Education dilema, please help!!
Originally Posted by mooncat2016
(Post 11999964)
Firstly Hi, new to this forum! and bit of a noob here so please forgive my ignorance.
I am in need to some guidance from those who may have had similar experiences and can share some lessons and guidance before I make s decision I and my children regret. In a nutshell I may have the opportunity to go on expat assignment with my company (good package) for 4-5 years to Houston. I am married with 3 boys 13, 15 and 17. I suspect the company will have some flexibility to when they family joins me and will pay for private education up to the age of 19. Now if I delay my family arrival to June 2017 my eldest will have completed his A levels. What type of college / school should he seek to get in then? What happens if say for example I don't complete the full 4 years out there, assuming degree courses are 4 years in the US, would he be allowed to stay in the US to finish his education? What would he / I need to do to ensure that? My middle son will have just completed his GCSE's in June 2017. Again so what / where would he go next? I assume he would do something A level equivalent for 2 years? Then what... If he went to start his degree we potentially could be 2 years in to it when we return. Again what would be the options, could we leave him in the US for two years to finish his education there, or would we really mess his education up as he would be unlikely to continue his study in the UK due to the different courses. Would he be better coming back to the UK and doing his study here on his own.. I know my wife wouldn't be happy with that... My youngest same issue, we would be starting his GCSE equivalent in 2017, assume he would do something similar in the US then hopefully onto A level equivalent. Same worry if I come back even a few months before his exams how does that work? My kids education is a big worry but don't want to give up on this too early as I think it would be a fantastic life experience for us all and you cant ignore the financial benefit, but its not at any cost.... Is this doable or just a train wreck waiting to happen? Any advise would be so much appreciated, thanks!! IMO if you go ahead with this move you will likely create an unholy mess for at least two of your sons. If you wait until the oldest has done his A'levels he may emerge relatively unscathed - the other two are likely to end up with a mish-mash of educational experience and qualifications that doesn't fit well with the higher education system of either country. BTW Please excuse PetiteFrancaise, she has become an expert in salvaging her childrens' school careers having conspired to wreck their studies by moving them not only between countries and dramatically different education systems, but also changing the language that their tuition is delivered in. :blink: She has pulled this remarkable stunt off helped significantly by the fact that all three are likely to win Nobel prizes for their undergraduate studies. :lol: |
Re: Education dilema, please help!!
Originally Posted by Pulaski
(Post 12000122)
I don't think I have ever seen an opening post on BE that so thoroughly examines the issues and reaches the logical conclusion. :lol:
IMO if you go ahead with this move you will likely create an unholy mess for at least two of your sons. If you wait until the oldest has done his A'levels he may emerge relatively unscathed - the other two are likely to end up with a mish-mash of educational experience and qualifications that doesn't fit well with the higher education system of either country. BTW Please excuse PetiteFrancaise, she has become an expert in salvaging her childrens' school careers having conspired to wreck their studies by moving them not only between countries and dramatically different education systems, but also changing the language that tuition is delivered in. :huh: She has pulled this remarkable stunt off helped significantly by the fact that all three are likely to win Nobel prizes for their undergraduate studies. :lol: Pulaski just HATES the way it's actually working out for my kids. We've had a few skirmishes on this one... It most definitely won't be easy for you to transfer the kids over. Even I probably wouldn't do it in your situation unless there was a green card sponsorship in the relocation package. My daughter has now completed her first year at Uni here, it's gone well and she is likely to stay here in the USA. My middle child wants to go back to Europe to study (not the UK though) and probably won't come back to live here and youngest just wants to ride horses still. The kids' attitudes to it all will be just about the most important element. If they're up for it and have a fair bit of "grit" then it will probably be ok. if they aren't, your life may well be a living hell and they'll never forgive you for moving them. Oh, wait. Teenagers will do that anyway! |
Re: Education dilema, please help!!
Originally Posted by petitefrancaise
(Post 12000132)
... Pulaski
|
Re: Education dilema, please help!!
Are you intending to just do 4 to 5 years in the US and then return to the UK?
I ask because if you intended to become a permanent resident i.e get your Green card (which means your family would to) then your elder son would not run the risk of aging out at 21 and having to leave the US. Getting a Green card on an L1 can be done in under a year these days - if your company want to sponsor you that is. If you fully intend to return to the UK after 4 to 5 years, personally I think you are interrupting your children's education too much. |
Re: Education dilema, please help!!
OK, I'm not going to comment on the level of disruption your kids' education may undergo, or how much putting your kids into college might cost, since my kids were born here.
If you do decide the move is still worthwhile, though, I can comment on education in the Houston area. The Houston metropolitan area is a huge urban sprawl, so where you work will have a big impact on where you would want to live. The biggest employment areas are downtown and areas nearby (The Galleria, Medical Center etc.), The Energy Corridor (I-10 just outside the Beltway, also called Sam Houston Tollway) and The Woodlands, but there are plenty of other areas with offices too. Public schools (i.e. state schools) in the US are generally arranged into school districts, usually called something then Independent School District. It's a fact of life here, even more than the UK, that the quality of schooling often corresponds to the affluence of the local area. Houston ISD is the biggest in the state, and has a few OK schools, mostly in the richer areas, but a lot of bad ones. Cy-Fair ISD is where my kids go. It's in the NW suburbs, and the third-biggest in the state. They have several really good schools, but also some that are much worse. I'll stop there, though, since I found a listing that claims there are 82 school districts in the Houston metro area. I'm not going to comment on all of those. Once you know better where you are likely to work, you'll have a better idea of the schools available to you, and we can provide more advice and send you off to look at school reviews. |
Re: Education dilema, please help!!
All, thanks for the candid responses, really appreciated. I will be working downtown Louisiana Street, in terms of living location my company provides a rental allowance, quite generous I think, somewhere between 5-6K a month so I am assuming I could choose location within reason and then expect commute to work each day. I am really torn here, on one hand a great life experience for the family and the package is very attractive, but I am worried about the kids and screwing them up. The term is likely to be only 4 years and then repatriated to the UK, but depending on term times I am sure the company will be flexible not to do anything stupid...
What to do..... Aghh... |
Re: Education dilema, please help!!
Originally Posted by SanDiegogirl
(Post 12000099)
Correct - spouses on L2's can work but not dependent children.
Also, to respond to another posting, the company has offered to pay for private education up to age 19 - so not University? |
Re: Education dilema, please help!!
Originally Posted by mooncat2016
(Post 12000914)
All, thanks for the candid responses, really appreciated. I will be working downtown Louisiana Street, in terms of living location my company provides a rental allowance, quite generous I think, somewhere between 5-6K a month so I am assuming I could choose location within reason and then expect commute to work each day. I am really torn here, on one hand a great life experience for the family and the package is very attractive, but I am worried about the kids and screwing them up. The term is likely to be only 4 years and then repatriated to the UK, but depending on term times I am sure the company will be flexible not to do anything stupid...
What to do..... Aghh... with no green cards on offer then I'd send the eldest to university in the UK and allow him to proceed with his own plans. The cost of university here can be eye-watering and it has to be paid in advance. There are cheaper options (like community college for a year or so then transfer to local university) but you may see this as a compromise not worth taking. The middle son is going to have to work very hard in order to get through all the graduation requirements for Texas, even if he is up for the work, then you are still taking him away from just about all he knows and only you know how well he will cope with that. My daughter coped well but we got our green cards and she knew she was going to university in the US which was what she had wanted to do anyway. I think someone else has said that he can continue to study here on an F1 visa but he won't be able to work in the USA afterwards so it might be better to send him back to the UK to get a degree from a UK university that future employers will recognise. The younger son is young enough to complete high school here. Of course, if a green card were being offered then my opinion would be different. |
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