UK's international study centers
to open in Thailand

Named after Princess Diana, the DPWISC was initially opened in 1989 at Riddlesworth Hall Preparatory School, where the princess was educated from ages nine to eleven.

New study centers

The new study centers will offer courses in January 2008 at Prem Tinsulanonda International School in Chiang Mai province and in September 2008 at Harrow International School in Bangkok for students, aged 11 to 16 years, from non-English speaking countries in order to provide them a smooth transition from their culture and education to the British or the international education system.

Besides Thai students, youths from other Southeast Asian countries, such as the Philippines and Brunei, as well as Japan, Korea and former members of the Soviet Union are also expected to enroll in the study centers, as it is more cost-effective than studying in the United Kingdom, says Peter Harris, director of DPWISC in Thailand.

The tuition for the study centers in Thailand is approximately 16,500 pounds (1,059,000 baht) per year.

Students take a maximum two-year course at these centers before pursuing their secondary education at international schools in Asia or at English speaking schools in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada or the US.

Different focuses

The DPWISC at Harrow International School provides the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) preparation, as well as intensive academic program, depending on the students' level of English.

On the other hand, the DPWISC at Prem International School provides International Baccalaureate (IB) preparation, besides intensive academic program.

While the study center at Harrow International School focuses on preparing students to enter the British boarding schools and British universities, the center at Prem Tinsulanonda International School focuses on international schools and international universities, explains Harris.

He says that most of the students at the two centers are expected, but not required to continue their secondary education at the two schools, for instance to study their Advanced Level (A-level) at Harrow or their IB at Prem.

Life on campus

Full boarding accommodation is provided at both schools, along with round the clock supervision. Students spend approximately 35 hours per week in classrooms, each class with an average class size of eight students.

They also have opportunities to mingle with regular class students, joining sports activities such as rugby, hockey, netball and cricket at Harrow, or tennis and golf at Prem.

Applications will be available beginning in October, with an approximate 10 percent quota for Thai students at Harrow and a flexible quota for Thai students at Prem, says Harris.

For further application details, contact Mrs Pippa Watt at DPWISC's Bangkok office at
(66)2-207-2638 or email dpwisc@aol.com .