Like any other parents, expatriate parents in the Kingdom want the best education for their children, but the cost of sending a child to a good school has become increasingly prohibitive. Nowadays parents have to fork out about SR25,000 or more for the education of one child at a good private school. It becomes a major burden if there are three or four children of school age. “I don't want to compromise on education. I consider it as the most important aspect of raising a child,” said Umm Bushra, an Indian parent of a student in an international school in Jeddah. “Fees of the school are very high but it is manageable because I have only one child. I am satisfied with its standard of education,'' she said. Saudi Arabia's expatriate population was estimated at 5.6 million as of July 2008. About 23 percent are from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Egypt, Yemen, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Syria, Turkey and North-East Africa. The children of expatriates are mostly not eligible to enter government schools that are free for Saudi citizens. There are a number of private international schools adopting the British and American educational systems and providing education for multiracial students. Many expatriates are not satisfied with the standard of teaching at the schools attached to their embassies and want an international standard of education for their children. Pakistani engineer Muhammad Nawaz, a father of six children, said he has no choice but to enroll his children in an embassy school. This is because there are so many other expenses that he has to cover, including investments and healthcare. He cannot afford an ‘O level' education for his children. Nawaz said he wants to provide a Cambridge education for his children. This means an International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE), sanctioned by Cambridge University, which is a very popular international qualification recognized by universities across the world. It is equal to the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) in the United Kingdom. The curriculum includes English, Humanities, Languages, Mathematics, Science, Social Science and Technology. There a number of private international schools running the IGCSE curriculum in Saudi Arabia. Abdul Ghafur, parent of Indian student Hanan Abdul Ghafur, said the annual cost of education at an embassy school is about SR5,000 to SR6,000 per child, which is quarter of the cost of study at a private school. “It is very difficult to manage private study expenses here because I have four children. I decided to send my family to my home country”. Bayt.com, a jobsite in the Middle East, has published a survey of earnings of Saudi Arabia's employees. A total of 20 percent earn up to $1,000 per month; 22 percent between $1,001 and $2,000 a month; 19 percent between $2,001 and $3,000; and 18 percent between $3,001 and $5.000. Just four percent earn over $10,000 a month. Many employers include free or subsidized education for the children of their employees. Gada Abdullah, an Egyptian, said she cannot afford to provide a Cambridge University-sanctioned education for her son. “It is not possible because the fees for ‘O level' study are very high and I cannot afford it.” She has three other children to provide for. The private schools are attractive because the majority is managed by experienced, qualified and English-speaking Western expatriates. In June 2008, six expatriate students from various cities of Saudi Arabia ranked top during the University of Cambridge International Examinations (CIE). While announcing the top performers at an award ceremony, William Bicker Dike, CIE regional manager for Middle East and North Africa, said results show the quality of teaching and the commitment of students in the Kingdom. The fees for schools with the British system of educatioin is about SR11,000 to SR15,000 annually for kindergarten, SR13,000 to SR16,000 for primary school and SR16,000 to SR20,000 for high school. Generally, transportation costs about SR1,500 to SR2,500 annually for each child. Higher education is more expensive than primary and secondary. “O” level and “A” level examination fee charges per subject are about SR500 to SR 800, apart from school fees. “We offer quality of education at low fees compared with other private schools. We have qualified staff whose salaries are quite high at high school level. Our results show our performance. It was 97.6% in 2009,” says Faeezeena Zacky, IGCSE coordinator at Al-Waha International School in Jeddah. “We offer concession in the fee for the 2nd, 3rd and 4th child, 10 percent, 15 percent and 20 percent, respectively, for the convenience of the parents,” she said “Education in the higher grades is more expensive than in the lower grades. We have highly qualified teachers for high school education and, of course, their salaries are higher than those of middle-school teachers. Secondly high school education needs special attention on laboratory experiments. Also there are more books that teachers use for reference and stationary papers are more expensive than in the lower grades. We try to do our best to keep less fee schedules. Mowever we offer some discounts for 2nd, 3rd and 4th child,” says Rana Aleem , Pakistani Principal of the Eshbelia International School in Jeddah. “Every parent has the right to expect the best possible education for his child,” said Ahmed Saeed, a Riyadh-based Pakistani father of four. “But as it is, children from less privileged families won't be able to attend good schools because they can't afford the school expenses,” he said. “Private schools have become schools for the rich. Poor students can no longer enroll in these schools because of the cost,” said Saeed.
