Schools in Doha and Fee Structure

A problem I have started to encounter is the availability of places in the schools.

I have a 4 year old daughter and a 14 year old son. I should be arriving in Qatar to take up a new job in the next few weeks with the family coming over for the start of the September term.

I have contacted Doha college and they are full. I have also contacted DESS and they are also full.

I am awaiting replies from a few other schools. I guess I can go through your list and hopefully finding something.

If your child is on a waiting list for a mainstream school when you first arrive in Doha, try Cedars Tutoring Centre.

Cedars offers a 'Bridging School Programme' - your child's education can continue uninterupted whilst you wait for a placement in your chosen school. Cedars has UK qualified teachers and follows the British curriculum. Class sizes are small and your child will recieve the individual attention that they deserve.

Cedars also offers additional tuition after regular school hours to students who are experiencing difficulties in certain subjects.

As demand for places at Cedars is on the increase, please email in the first instance and you will be contacted by the school to discuss your child's placement.

Email the Administration Manager: louisevippond/-a-t-/hotmail.com

just to say that Doha College prices have been hiked since that was psosted or since it hasnt been updated in website etc...doha college prices, not sure for lower school, but i know that for 6th form its 11950 a term...scary isnt it, we pay as much as primary pays for a whole year /-a-t-/ dess :D

Hi everyone
I wanted to know which school can I place my girl at 6, to a school where she can learn english and other languages best.
My husband is planning to work there, And me and kid will come if we can solve the problem of education there.
Any advice?

 good infrmation

hi, add this school to your list

Mrs. Samarhan Emadeldin

Hours of operation: from 6.30 to 2.5 O'clock

Extended hours till, if offered: till 6 O'clock in the evening and on Saturday for extra fees.

Ages accepted: from 2 month to 4 years.

Monthly Payment :1000 Q.R.

Holidays: Friday

Transport provided: School Bus is available from the next month.

Hours of operation: from 6.30 to 2.5 O'clock

Extended hours till, if offered: after school activities and Saturday is an open day for extra-curriculum.

Ages accepted: from 2 years to 5 years.

Fees: Payment per term

Holidays: Friday.

Transport provided: School Bus is available by the next year.

School InformationAddress: Alhilal Area– Ashbelya Street – villa No. 8

which is affiliated with The International School of London. They will be running an IB programme and I believe they will be situated near CNA. They will take children from Nursery though to Year 9.

Besides the ISL (International School of London) ages 3 thru 18 opening up in September there will also be the Michael DeBakey High chool from Houston Texas opening. All this according to the Gulf Times of today, April 21, 2008 - page 4 Check out the info on www.gulf-times.com

Hope this aleviates some of the worries for those parents waiting for their children to arrive.

Good luck 

Aisha-Taweela

No more info from my side than what is in the Gulf Times. Try to google them, contact the UK side? Be a bit creative in your search.

Aisha-Taweela

Can anyone give more info about Michael DeBakey High chool from Houston Texas .. we are moving to doha in about 6 weeks and I am looking for elementary(primary) schools for my 2 kids with American curriculum..

Any info would be helpful.. my hubby is there and when he contacted the ASD they said the waitlist is closed. I prefer the kids to go to the American curriculum coz it would be easier for them once we return to the US to assimilate back.

Hey there,

There is a new School opening in September, they are having their open day on the 6th May. The School is called International School of London, they have a website.

Good Luck

Look elsewhere...

hey guys i need help,

i want to know which age we have to put are babys to school. now my baby is 2 half years and she s going to playschool now.

From what I heard, Al Maha does not have a good reputation Wa Allahu Aalam . But It depends on the offer you have. Could you be more specific.

Did you get any replies that you found useful ? I am in the same situation. I have a daughter who is in 6th grade in US right now. I am trying to see if I should let her continue here in US till June or should I seek out a school in Doha. Any good schools with American curriculum ?

Hi any one from Sri Lanka could give me an idea for what best school in Qatar for SL Child. If he had learnt in native language and with some stand of English at SL,

A sincere advice to parents. Please do not send your children to Al Maha English School. I am telling all this from my personal experience. The standard is very low. They mentioned that its Islamic and English school but it should be labelled as only islamic school. A very low grade english school. Their advertising is very good that is why they attract more local people to join. But reality is very different from what they exactly are. They have been through several managment changes. The present managment is Human Soft which are the same people as Al jazeera academy. A bunch of greedy people.My children were there and I know how they make parents a fool. A friend of mine used to work there. She mentioned some issues to me. They charged 2500 QR for class books which are actually not more than 500 QR. later when parents complained they appologised and added the other resources cost in it. Children in year 5 and 6 are still struggling to read basic english books. They even cannot read and write a simple english sentence properly. There staff is also not qualified as they mentioned. Art teachers taking english classes and when the nurse is absent, anyone can take her place. This is a health and safety issue. Any teacher can cover anyone. Please do not send your child there. This management is wasting your time and money. Your child will be a below average student if you him there. They can make you happy by showing some UK staff there. But actually they are very small in number. Who actually have british accents only and no qualifications. Please be patient search for other schools.

HI. We are moving to Doha at the end of march. I have 2 teen girls,12 and 13(turning 14). Compass have opened there applications for there new campus but as they don't offer there year bands currently my girls are going to be out of school for the next 6 months. Are there any schools that offer summer camps. I don't seem to be able to find that info available. Are there youth groups for teens to meet each other?

thanks for the info. The Marhaba sounds a bit like the HK mag we used to get in hong kong. A vital source of info. My girls are currently studying online as we are in a remote city in china with no int. school so it looks like we'll just continue until school resumes. I guess we'll be hanging out at the mall alot!

Barrilero, where are your kids going to school now?
You may want to make the transition easier for them by choosing a similar system/curriculum.
Or you might want to consider in which country they will be attending college and make a decision based on which school here might be most compatible.
Dig around here on QL, there's lots of info about schools.

I send my boy to Al Maha, and he's doing very well. In literacy and numeracy, he does reach the right level and comparable to where he should be in a UK school (I've tested him at home). It may be that his teacher is especially good, but I really have nothing to complain about in terms of his academic standards.

I know a lot has changed in his school since September, and its been mostly positive. We didn't have to pay the 2500QR for the books - sense prevailed and it was cut down to 900QR!

I think its unfair to label it as rubbish. I know some dedicated, caring teachers who do a wonderful job there. Don't get me wrong, I do have some serious issues with the school, but locally, they seem to be very open and act quickly to put things right.

I asked about the issue of the nurse, as I wanted to be sure that my kid was in a safe environment. They did assure me that the 3 or 4 members of staff on standby if the nurse is absent are fully first-aid trained and one is in fact a qualified nurse before she changed profession to a support worker. I just needed to be sure!

Not the best school, but I'm happy with my kid at Al Maha.