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Secondary education

ACS School Cobham- What's it like?

34 replies

Tupacca · 17/06/2018 09:53

I like the idea of an international school for my son aged 12. Does anyone have experience of ACS Cobham? I had read on an old Mumsnet thread that said the kids who aren't super wealthy are made to feel left out/get less attention(!) Anyone know what the culture is there?

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Tupacca · 11/09/2018 15:16

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yougotanygrapes · 11/09/2018 17:57

From experience....

Nice school, grounds and facilities are amazing.

Parents don't seem to fraternise with the help (nannies). Some very stuck up but I'm sure there are lots of nice ones too.

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Tupacca · 11/09/2018 18:24

Thank yougot! Do you know anything about how it is educationally? or how friendly the kids are to each other?

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yougotanygrapes · 11/09/2018 18:37

The older kids seem lovely. Very polite. Educationally- I've heard all good things. Facilities are fab if your little one is sporty.

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Caddyshack · 11/09/2018 18:45

With any international school keep in mind that the 25-30% of the population turns over each year, so kids tend to have to say goodbye to friends each summer. All 3 of mine went to another international school when we first moved to the UK and this was one of the toughest things.

Two of mine have since moved to English schools for various reasons so take that for what it's worth...

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ksb76 · 12/09/2018 00:29

My two have been at other international schools around the world, and what we have found is that as the poster above has indicated, there can be a huge turnover each year which can make friendships quite hard. For the teaching staff, this also means that there is no long term gratification - the students you have in year 7 and 8 are unlikely to still be with you all the way to years 12 and 13, hence you don't see the eventual results, and we have found that they are relatively uninvested in each individual child.

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OlennasWimple · 12/09/2018 18:29

Are most students (and staff) at ACS American, or is there more of a mix of international backgrounds?

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yougotanygrapes · 12/09/2018 18:42

I would say mostly American. Staff and pupils.

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Tupacca · 12/09/2018 20:01

Thank you everyone. Has anyone got children at ACS or had in the past? It is worrying the high turnover. Might mean people are more welcoming/friendly as they know what it's like to be the new kid. But academically I don't know how well they do .

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Tupacca · 13/09/2018 18:47

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Tupacca · 13/09/2018 20:09

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Caddyshack · 13/09/2018 20:46

The turnover isn't worrying, it's quite normal for a school that serves an expat (transient) population. I'm sure they post their results on the school website... best to dig in there. It's not a British curriculum school so of course no GCSEs etc

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Caddyshack · 13/09/2018 20:49
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Tupacca · 13/09/2018 21:11

I just meant it was worrying in terms of my child losing friends. I want to find a couple of current parents there to ask them what the atmosphere of the school is like.

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Tupacca · 15/09/2018 15:50

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Tupacca · 16/09/2018 18:59

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Tupacca · 17/09/2018 18:02

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Tupacca · 22/09/2018 21:34

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THEsonofaBITCH · 24/09/2018 14:53

I can only say we considered it but the turnover we were advised is 1/3 of the class every year with near total turnover every 3 years so if you are planning on staying more than 2 years kids will have had to make whole new group of friends. As we were looking at 5+ years we went with UK schools for stability

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Montaguesmum · 04/07/2019 10:18

If you need more info, message me privately. Realise this is late but for anyone else who finds this thread.

I've had kids at Cobham for 11 years. Yes high turnover - my eldest finished her education there and only a 1/3 of her graduating class had started in Year 10 (9th grade - ie the HS. Less than 10 had been there in primary years.. Increasing amounts of permanent families but movement is still an issue.

Cobham currently going through lots of transition staff wise and in terms of direction. There are both good and bad points to the school - as with any school.

BTW we're a dual US/UK family, permanently residing here in the UK.

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banker100 · 30/09/2019 14:47

hi- can we please discuss it offline? I am really interested in this school for both of my children, went to see the facility and met with some teachers, so far it is great, but I am sure there is more behind the scenes!!!

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Sunlight01 · 02/03/2021 12:40

@Montaguesmum I am planning to send my girls to ACS cobham. I would be planning to stay there for long. check with the school and they have in year admission and they also have admission in Pre-K

Please share you knowleadge on school. And do you still have your kids in this school.

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CurlyTop1980 · 17/01/2023 17:30

Does anyone have any updated on this school & currently views on the school?

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applemanic · 15/02/2023 11:00

We are considering ACS Cobham or one of the ACS Group of Schools for our son, 14 who has SEN, and likely to cope in mainstream school with SEN support. I'd like to hear from any parents with any feedback on this school.
Any input is much appreaciated.

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Ericaequites · 15/02/2023 13:35

As an American, I wouldn’t choose an American curriculum school. It’s not as challenging or interesting as the British curriculum.

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