Grade Placement 

ICS grade placement is based on the American system of education. Students enter ICS from a variety of educational backgrounds and we consider factors such as age, previous educational system and academic success within that system when determining grade placement. For social and developmental reasons, ICS will not enroll students who are more than one year older or younger than the expected age for the grade into which they should be placed academically. ICS will also not accept students into grade 12 after the beginning of the academic year.

Parents are responsible for providing all school records in English. Grade placement cannot be determined without school records, except for students starting school. Placement assessments may also be required, based on our evaluation of the applicant's educational background and records.

Early Childhood (EC) and Kindergarten Program Placement

Students applying to the Early Childhood Program or to kindergarten must be the appropriate age for the class to which they are applying; no exceptions are made. All children must be fully toilet-trained.

Elementary School Grade Placement

Grade placement for grades 1 to 5 is determined by ICS based on age. Secondary factors that can affect placement are previous educational system and calendar, academic success within the previous system and any additional assessments required by ICS. Placement of children with birthdays in the summer months leading up to the August 31 cut-off is also considered on a case-by-case basis.

Middle and High School Grade Placement

ICS uses an August 31 cut-off date to determine the age-appropriate grade level for children. ICS reserves the right, in consultation with the family, to make the final decision regarding grade placement.

	ICS Grade Level	Age on or before 31 August
Early Childhood	EC3	3
	EC4	4
Elementary School	KG	5
	Grade 1	6
	Grade 2	7
	Grade 3	8
	Grade 4	9
	Grade 5	10
Middle School	Grade 6	11
	Grade 7	12
	Grade 8	13
High School	Grade 9	14
	Grade 10	15
	Grade 11	16
	Grade 12	17

 

 

Some national school systems (particularly in the southern hemisphere) have very different start/finish dates than ICS. ICS is conservative when placing students in such transfers. If a child has just finished the equivalent of our grade eight in one system in December, for example, and is transferring to ICS in January, we will not “skip” half of our grade nine year and enroll him/her in grade nine, in the middle of our school year. In most circumstances, the child will repeat the last of half of grade eight with us and then begin grade nine in August.

 

 

There is a simple numbering difference between the British year system and the ICS system. We will use the scale below for purposes of grade level placement at ICS for students coming from British-based educational systems.

 

Years 10 and 11 (GCSE or O-level years) are the equivalent of grades 9 and 10 at ICS. Years 12 and 13 (A-level years) are the equivalent of grades 11 and 12 at ICS, during which students may elect to participate in the IB Diploma Programme.