Questions to Ask Before Choosing an International School

By the time you're ready to accept a place, you've probably visited, emailed, maybe sat through an open day. This is the stage to ask about what happens when things don't go to plan, and to read the enrolment contract as carefully as you toured the campus. Every school looks reasonable in a brochure. The ones worth choosing are the ones that stay reasonable when you ask something harder, and put it in writing.

Questions about whether your child will fit in

• What happens if my child needs to move up or down a year group after starting?
• How does the school support a child joining mid-year, both academically and socially, in practice?
• What's the real approach to homework and screen time, and does it line up with what we actually want for our child?
• How diverse is the current cohort in my child's specific year group, in nationality and home language, not just school-wide?

Questions to ask before you sign anything

This is the layer most parents skip, and the one that matters most once a family is committed. Before signing an enrolment contract:

• If a member of staff has made a verbal promise, about support, class placement, fee level, will the school confirm it in writing before you sign?
• What's the actual fee increase over each of the last three years, not just the general policy on annual increases?
• If we withdraw partway through the year, do we owe the rest of the term, the rest of the year, or a pro-rated amount?
• What happens to our deposit if the school closes, merges, or changes ownership?
• Can we have 24 to 48 hours to read the contract properly before we're expected to sign?

Ask exactly what's refundable if your plans change, and how much notice you need to give to avoid an extra term's fees. Get the capital or registration deposit terms in writing rather than taking a verbal answer at face value, these vary more between schools in the same city than most parents expect going in. Admissions teams at schools like Al Nahda National Schools in Abu Dhabi tend to be straightforward about deposit and withdrawal terms when asked directly, which is a fair standard to hold every school to, whether or not they volunteer it first.

How to contact school via doris

Step 1: view school profile 

Step 2: Pick your enquiry and contact school directly 

Step 3: Fill-up your questions, and you'll get the answer from your dashboard in no time. 

note: Some schools on doris have a contact option, while others don’t. If you can’t find contact details, visit the school’s website and check its “Contact Us” or “Admissions” page.

Questions about what happens if something goes wrong

Ask who the designated safeguarding lead is, by name if possible, and how a concern actually gets raised and followed up. Ask what happens if your child needs more academic, language or emotional support after they've already enrolled, not just whether support exists somewhere in the prospectus. If you're still narrowing schools by curriculum first, IB vs British curriculum is worth a read before you get to this harder layer of questions.

Use your notes, not just your first impression

Go back to what you actually wrote down during visits and open days, not just your general impression of which school felt nicest. A school that gave clear, specific answers under harder questioning, and was happy to put things in writing, tends to hold up better over years than one that was warm on the day but vague whenever it mattered.

FAQ

How many schools should we shortlist before deciding? Two or three finalists is usually manageable. Beyond that, the comparison gets harder to hold in your head, not easier.

Should we ask to speak with current parents? Yes, and most schools can arrange it. If a school resists this entirely, that's worth asking about directly.

What if we're still stuck after all our questions are answered? Go back to your original non-negotiables list. Often one school is a clear match on the two or three things that matter most to you, even when it isn't perfect across the board.

Is it normal to negotiate fees or deposit terms? Uncommon at most established schools, though newer schools or ones with lower enrolment sometimes have more room, particularly on deposit timing rather than the fee itself.

doris is a free, impartial international school discovery platform designed to help parents find the right international school for their children worldwide. Every school profile includes fees, curriculum, admissions, pupil numbers and more. Parents can compare schools, contact schools directly, access expert parent guides, and connect with a community of parents around the world. Start your search at doris.

This guide was written by Aziza F, part of the doris editorial team. doris sources school data from institutions worldwide and speaks directly with parents navigating the school search process. Fee data reflects published and publicly available information for the 2026 to 2027 academic year and is reviewed annually. External sources: school admissions pages, doris parent community.