According to new research, demand for English-medium international schools around the world is growing rapidly and already outstripping supply.
ISC Research, the only body dedicated to tracking the sector, said that 6,000 schools now delivered their curriculum in English outside an English-speaking country, compared with 2,584 in 2000.
They said this would reach 10,000 by 2021, with the market catering to 5.7million students and employing 545,000 English-speaking staff.
“The international schools market has doubled in size in the last 10 years and will undoubtedly continue its dramatic growth over the next 10 years,” said Nicholas Brummitt, Managing Director of ISC.
“The greatest demand is coming from increasingly wealthy families in Asia, including the Middle East, wanting an English-medium education for their children. Almost two thirds of the growth in schools and student numbers continues to be in this area.”
ISC said that 80% of pupils at international schools were now local, and 20% expatriate – a ratio that was reversible 30 years ago.
It also indicated an “acute” shortage of international school places in areas such as Hong Kong, Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Countries such as Malaysia were also said to be actively encouraging schools to open by easing regulations in areas such as taxation and providing land and buildings in development zones.
ISC said that 80% of pupils at international schools were now local, and 20% expatriate
“The future will be dominated by for-profit international schools, bilingual to varying degrees, located in residential communities, with more of an emphasis on local language and culture but at the same time increasingly international in terms of curriculum and outlook,” said Brummitt.
“This huge growth will increase competition for the best opportunities, the best teachers and the best students.”
One of the most noticeable shifts in the international schools market has been a move away from private but “not for profit” operations to a predominantly for-profit model.
ISC said that the sector was now worth US$26 billion in fee income alone and would see this grow to $49 billion by 2021. It also expects multinational groups in the sector such as GEMS, Nord Anglia and Cognita to grow.
Said Anne Keeling, ISC’s media relations representative: “The one thing that nearly all these groups have in common is that they are expanding aggressively either by buying existing schools, expanding existing operations or starting new schools.”
