lapin_windstar

I went the other way: US to UK. Actually, I did US, UK and IB curricula all in the space of 4 years.

But what other kids do is irrelevant - it's more about what's good for your kid. Find out the curricula of each possible school, compare it to what he is working on at the moment, and then go from there.

Englishmum

We moved to the US when my daughter was 16 as my spouse was transferred to the NYC office; she had been at an international school in Singapore which had a British curriculum and took her IGCSE's. If she'd stayed on there she would have taken the International Baccalaureate Diploma as they didn't offer 'A' levels.

However, our daughter wasn't keen on going to an American school from 16-18; she knew lots of American kids from Singapore American School and had an American boyfriend....she said that they were way behind in maths compared to what they were doing at her school. She also didn't like the 'Valley Girls' much and her impression was that many of the Americans but a bit immature.

Our daughter decided to go to boarding school in England and take 'A' levels (the company paid towards the fees) and her plan had always been to take a Gap Year before going to uni; she went trekking in India and the Himalayas.

Fortunately she was then able to qualify for 'home fees' status for uni (we had been out of the EU for a few years, but still kept our home in Essex, we were on non-immigrant visas and spouse had to produce a letter from HR to send to the university admissions office to show that this was the case).

On the other hand our son was almost 12 and had just finished primary school in a British school in Singapore....he is at university here in NJ....daughter living and working in London and spouse now based in Singapore (but constantly travelling to London and Switzerland...)

Does your son know what he wants to do for a career? Bachelor's College degrees in the US are for four years as opposed to the usual three for most UK courses (the first year in the US is like a foundation course AFAIK).

You need to think seriously about whether or not you are going to be on a standard expat posting or if you are going to stay in the US permanently. On an L2 visa your son won't be allowed to do any (paid) work in the US, are you happy to be his benefactor for a few years? On the other hand, he could do 'A' levels or the IB in the UK and then take a Gap Year and hang out in the States for a few months.... Lots to think about!

meauxna

Here's one someone posted for you just last week!

Advice needed - Post 16 Education in Indianapolis?

newcomer

We have just been through the process of evaluating both systems with the help of an educational consultant. Our 16 year old was moving from the UK to Houston having completed GCSE's at boarding school. It is a difficult transition to go from the UK system to the US system - there are various subjects in the US system that your son would have to study - US History for example - before he could graduate from school. The uni system in England does not recognised the US High School system, except for AP classes and I mention this in a previous post. Our son is at the British School and he is extremely happy - he is doing the IB which will enable him to either go to a UK or US uni. There are also some US High Schools in the Houston area that offer the IB.

Hillsider

Perfect - thanks newcomer. We have more or less decided that that's the way we are going to go too. We are going over in just over a week and plan to visit the UK School to have a chat with them.

Thanks again for your time.

newcomer

No problem. PM me if you need any more info.

lapin_windstar

Sorry - and not to be nasty, in the nicest possibly way - but this is incorrect.

First of all, there is no unitary "uni system" to speak of in England with system-wide recognition or non-recognition because each uni/college sets its own admission requirements (and, sometimes, each faculty/department of each institution).

Second, US high school education is recognised; whether it is sufficient for entry on its own depends on how competitive the school and course is. If the kid wants to do Locksmithing Studies at Fulchester Polyversity, she'll be fine. If she wants to do PPE at Brasenose, she'll need to show a bit more. But this is nothing more than the same approach to A-levels in England and the same approach to US students by competitive US colleges (i.e. not including the CCs and state colleges that guarantee entry to anyone with a diploma).

Sally Redux

Thanks for that, I am interested in this for my son.

tigerbaywarrior

Still, the drive from the Woodlands to anywhere else at that time in the morning is bad at best. Having lived in the Woodlands and driven around Houston for the past 6 years, I can vouch for all seasons/weathers/traffic problems!

Do thorough research on the schools in the area - find out the bad points as well. The Woodlands is a great place to live BUT it does have some negative points as well - although some residents would have you believe it's utopia!

Good luck!

lapin_windstar

No worries - International (i.e. foreign) Students are big business for UK universities so if you ever have any questions, just pick up the phone and call the international office or admissions office and have a chat. Most of them are pretty helpful. They're dealing with kids from dozens of countries anyway, typically, so a US application isn't going to be anything incomprehensible to them.

Sally Redux

That's true - I've heard they're going all out to get more foreign students.

scrubbedexpat099

Even though they do not have enough space for domestic ones.

At 16 can he not drive himself?

Sally Redux

That's true although he has to hold a permit for 6 months first -at least in CA.

lapin_windstar

Source?

scrubbedexpat099

BBC