Education Destination Malaysia conducted a survey on school intake months for international schools in September 2021 and here are the responses.
How many intakes are there in a year?
The number of intakes in a year varies from school to school. Out of the 47 international schools that answered the survey, 16 schools offer 3 intakes and 13 schools offer two intakes in a year. Schools usually offer two to three intakes, but some schools such as Australian International School Malaysia offer 4 intakes in a year. Five schools reported offering only 1 intake. These are MAHSA International School, Sri Bestari International School, Sri KDU International School (Kota Damansara Campus), St. John's International School and UCSI Schools Springhill Campus.
There are, however, schools that have rolling enrolment throughout the year. This means that they accept students at any time of the year. These include schools such as Alice Smith School, Beaconhouse Sri Inai International School, British International School Kuala Lumpur, elc International School, Kinabalu International School, Marlborough College Malaysia, Oasis International School – Kuala Lumpur, Sasana International School and Seri Botani International School.
Do note that some international schools do not accept students in selective months.
Shattuck-St. Mary’s Forest City International School, for instance, accepts transfer students any time in the academic year except in June and December.
Kolej Tuanku Ja’afar which is based in Mantin, Negeri Sembilan, accepts students enrolling into Early Years, Primary and Lower Secondary at any time of the year but have specific intakes for IGCSE and A-Levels. Their IGCSE intake is in September whereas the A-Level intake is in January and September.
Check out the full list below of intakes below.
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When are the intakes?
The main intake is usually in January as reported by 37 international schools. The next main intake is in September, according to 28 international schools. Besides January and September, April and August are also popular intake months.
According to Jordan Eng, Director of Operations from Kueen Lai International Secondary School, the school’s main intakes are in January and September but they also accept students who enrol into the school from June to December.
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What are the levels of education offered by international schools?
Most international schools offer at least three levels of education. Most of the schools that responded offer a combination of preschool, primary and secondary education or from preschool till pre-university or Sixth Form.
Out of the 47 international schools that responded, 7 schools cater to students in primary school and older. These include The International School of Penang (Uplands) as well as the Sri KDU International Schools in Kota Damansara and Klang which cater to primary school students till pre-university.
The elc International School which has campuses in Cyberjaya and Sungai Buloh caters to primary and secondary school students only.
The remaining schools focus on secondary school education onwards.
- Charterhouse Malaysia – they offer the IGCSE and A Levels
- Kueen Lai International Secondary School
- Shattuck-St. Mary's Forest City International School
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Are there any fee waivers/discounts/scholarships for new students?
Many international schools offer fee waivers, discounts and scholarships for new students. You may refer to this list for more information on fee waivers, discounts or scholarships or contact the schools directly.
Malaysian Curriculum Schools
Intakes for private schools offering the Malaysian curriculum are usually in January. These schools include Asia Pacific Smart School, Sekolah Tenby Ipoh, Sekolah Sri Tenby Penang, Sekolah Sri Tenby Setia Eco Park and Sekolah Sri Tenby Setia Eco Gardens.
If you’re looking for institutions offering pre-university, you may want to add Kolej Yayasan UEM (KYUEM) to your list. KYUEM’s intakes are in January and July.
Respondents
Education Destination Malaysia would like to thank the following people for responding to the survey:
- Justine Cheah, Product Strategy Manager, ACE EdVenture (Sri Emas International School and Dwi Emas International School)
- Vengkat Rao, Sales & Marketing, Acmar International & Private School
- Andrea Grassby, Director of Marketing and Admissions, Alice Smith School
- Rob Reed, Executive Principal, Asia Pacific International School and Asia Pacific Smart School
- Shakyra Manogaran, Communications and Social Media Executive, Australian International School Malaysia
- Connie Liaw, Corporate Communications Senior Executive, Beaconhouse Sri Inai International School
- Carl Esposito, Director of Admissions & Marketing, British International School Kuala Lumpur
- Dr May Heong, Head of Marketing and Admissions, Charterhouse Malaysia
- Tammi Yost, Director of Admissions, Dalat International School
- Gavin Hardie, Senior Services Manager, elc International School
- Alexia Hennaut, Marketing Manager, French School of Kuala Lumpur
- Jayee Teh, Admissions & Operations Manager, Havil International School
- Jia Jin Cheong, Assistant Manager, Marketing and Communications Department, HELP International School
- Sara Nadhirah Mohamed Najid, Marketing and Administration Manager, IDRISSI International School
- Warren Chew, Senior Marketing Executive, IGB International School
- Julia Love, Director of Admissions, International School of Kuala Lumpur
- Lee Guat Ting, Assistant Manager (Sales & Marketing), The International School of Penang (Uplands)
- Lisa Ambrose, Head of Marketing and Admissions, Kinabalu International School
- Neoh Soon Ken, Chief Marketing Officer, Kingsgate International School
- Jane Wong, Registrar, Kolej Tuanku Ja’afar
- Jordan Eng, Director of Operations, Kueen Lai International Secondary School
- Frances Tan, Deputy Principal, Lodge International School
- Martin Yong, Sales Manager, MAHSA International School
- Chan Shu Mun, Executive, Maple Leaf Kingsley International School
- Charlotte Duncan, Head of Marketing and Communications, Marlborough College Malaysia
- Evelyn Lee, Head of Marketing & Communications, Methodist Council of Education (Wesley Methodist Schools (International & Private)
- Bekah Dawson, Director of School Advancement, Oasis International School – Kuala Lumpur
- Josephine Leong, Marketing Communications Manager, Prince of Wales Island International School (POWIIS) & POWIIS Primary
- Lauro Malocloc, Senior Marketing Executive, Repton International School
- Lee Wei Sum, Relationship Manager, Sasana International School
- Joanne Lee, Marketing & Communications, Sayfol International School
- Joey Thum, Senior Admissions Executive, Seri Botani International School
- Salem Abduhu, Marketing Manager, Seven Skies International School
- Grace Lee, Admissions Associate, Shattuck-St. Mary’s Forest City International School
- Janice Phua, Assistant Manager, Sri Bestari International School
- Wong Sin Yi, Marketing Manager, Sri KDU International School (Kota Damansara Campus)
- Nicholas Law, Assistant Manager – Marketing, Sri KDU Klang
- Grace Deepa, Marketing Manager, St. John’s International School
- Arief Redzuan bin Ahmad, Marketing Manager, Templer Park International School
- Martin Shelley, Campus Principal, Tenby International School Setia EcoHill
- Jane Kuok, Campus Principal, Tenby International School Tropicana Aman
- Lee Chalkly, Campus Principal, Tenby Schools Ipoh and Sekolah Tenby Ipoh
- Jeanne Denyer, Campus Principal, Tenby Schools Penang and Sekolah Sri Tenby Penang
- Liam Hammer, Campus Principal, Tenby Schools Setia Eco Gardens and Sekolah Sri Tenby Setia Eco Gardens
- Iain Sallis, Campus Principal, Tenby Schools Setia Eco Park and Sekolah Sri Tenby Setia Eco Park
- Wong Kin Tung, Chief Operating Officer & Principal, UCSI Schools Springhill Campus
- Jazzmen Leong Chee Hoe, Marketing & Graphic Designer, Westlake International School
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- Video: What to Look for in an International School
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