The Foreign Service Journal, December 2011

100 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 1 S CHOOLS S UPPLEMENT Boarding Schools: Useful Tips 1. Start Early . Most boarding schools fill up quickly by spring of the previous school year. 2. Go online and start researching. The Family Liaison Office has found the following websites to be particularly useful: www.boardingschoolreview.com/ www.boardingschools.com/ www.boardingschoolsinfo.com/ 3. Keep your child involved in the decision process right from the start! If they’ve been part of the process, they’ll be invested in making it work. 4. Contact FLO for guidance at FLOAskEducation@state.gov 5. Contact schools directly to find out about their admissions process and requirements. Some boarding schools have fixed dates for applications and some have rolling application dates. 6 .Schedule the Secondary School Admission Test (SSAT) or the Independent School Entrance Exam (ISEE) if either is a requirement for admission. 7. Visit schools , if possible. well for children with special needs when there are not adequate educa- tional programs overseas. What about Cost? The Away-from-Post Education Allowance, sometimes referred to as the Boarding School Allowance, varies from post to post. This means that parents must consider the actual allowance available at the assigned post when deciding to send their child to boarding school. The allowance at a given post may not cover all of the expenses associated with sending a The allowance at a given post may not cover all of the expenses.