We have reached the halfway point in our second semester and the students who were newly enrolled in January have now pretty much become Kodai kids. It was great to see them at the formal this past Saturday night dressed in their finery and enjoying the excitement with the rest of the grade 9 through 12 students. How wonderful to see the jeans and tshirts exchanged for dresses and suits! I was impressed to see some of our young men carrying roses to hand to their dates - romance hasn’t quite died then! Below is a breakdown of admission figures from January to date:January and February 2009 - Total = 158
Foreign fee payers = 69
Local fee payers = 89
Of these enquiries, 26 were actual visitors to KIS.
Two interesting enquiries last week: one from Jamaica - a family returning to India and the other from France - the family spent some years in the States but have been back in France the last four years. They are wanting their daughter (grade 10) to have a year experience in another country and KIS seems like a good option to them. These, however, are just two of the continuing number of enquiries we receive from outside of India.
The website, online enquiry form and application kit have all helped in getting the KIS message out there and increased the efficiency and speed with which an enquiry turns into an application and an application into an enrolled student! As the global recession hits, there is an expected 40-50% drop in Indian syllabus schools’ occupancy in Dubai and possibly the rest of UAE and this appears to be having a positive impact on KIS admission statistics.
We have had a number of enquiries from KIS alumni lately and we welcome the continuity this brings for the families involved and KIS.
2009-2010 enrollment statistics to 9 March:
Enrolled = 39
Accept (probables) = 35
In process (possibles) = 35
Looking at the figures above, we now have 109 “in the works” so KIS Admissions has another 30-50 to recruit in order to reach the target for July 2009. We’re confident the target will be reached as the months of March and April are our busiest.
The breakdown of these figures to date is:
11 into ES (pre school to grade 5) for a total of 49
45 into MYP (grades 6-10) for a total of 257
51 into grade 11 for a total of 105
advancing grade 12 students = 157
anticipated total (pre school to grade 12) = 568 (as of today!)
Our Thai applicants have increased by a further two this past week, bringing the Thai contingent to a possible 21. The Korean students could number 66. However, there are a further 24 nationalities represented in our student body. We need to be conscious of our staffing in the ESL department and with the MYP / IB first language requirements, we may soon need to recruit a Thai language teacher.
The move of grades 7 and 8 to Ganga compound is anticipated. The student population on that campus will nearly double, but all facilities will be well and truly in place to cope with the influx in July.
Another exciting development for KIS Admissions is the push ahead with PYP. This could well increase our numbers in grades 4 and 5.
Two future events are planned. Information receptions will be held in:
Nairobi hosted by KIS staff member and parent Marsha Joshi on 6 - 7 June 2009
Dubai will be hosted by the Admissions Coordinator, Principal and Alumni Officer on 6 May 2009
We have one SAGE student enrolled. With the possibility of two in the 2009-2010 academic year. We encourage a first semester enrollment of these students so that they can take advantage of field trip week and the winter tour. Currently we have two KIS students attending Carey Baptist Grammar School in Melbourne, Australia and look forward to the reciprocal arrangement in July. The German exchange students will number six in July which will further enhance our diversity. One of these exchange students will remain at KIS for a further semester as a fee-paying student.
Financial aid applications for assistance in the 2009-2010 academic year closed on 1 March. It appears that the number of students on aid will be what it was for the 2008-2009 year, ie 55. It is wonderful to be able to support this number of students and sufficient budgeted financial aid will continue to be provided to help maintain the desired balances in our student body.
