CA 209: The Cost of Education at CA
Posted 04/25/2019 13:54

CA 209: The Cost of Education at CA

The school's mission statement is: "Canadian Academy inspires students to inquire, reflect, and choose to compassionately impact the world through their lives." One of the core values is "open, respectful, and inclusive communication builds trust." Our mission requires great staff and resources and comes with a significant price. The intention of this article is to communicate about that cost as it compares with similar schools and those which are not so similar.

First, we'll look at how our tuition fees compare to our collegial schools in the Asia Pacific Activities Conference – schools that many of our families attended before arriving in Kobe or which they will move on to next.

Asia Pacific Activities Conference Schools (APAC)
There are 11 schools in the APAC conference across 5 countries including:

The cost of living varies among the cities where APAC schools are located. Hong Kong is the most expensive, followed by Seoul, Shanghai and Kobe. Following these is Beijing and Guangzhou with the least expensive cities being Hanoi and Manilla. (Source: Mercer Cost-of-Living Index)

Based on this information, where would you guess that Canadian Academy's 2018-19 tuition rates fall in comparison to APAC schools? Perhaps in the middle?

In fact, our cost of attendance is the second lowest for returning students before and after adjustment for the cost of living in various cities. Brent International School Manilla is the lowest.

APAC School Fee Comparison

International Schools in Japan
We don't live in those cities, you might say. So how do CA's fees compare to other schools in Japan? We compared total fees among 28 different international schools in Japan. Tohoku International School, which serves just 100 students in PreK to Grade 12 in Sendai, is the lowest cost.

The top four most expensive schools have been serving the international communities of Tokyo, Yokohama, and Kobe since before World War II and as far back as 1872. They are:

  1. Yokohama International School founded in 1924
  2. American School in Japan founded in 1902
  3. St. Maur's International School founded in 1872
  4. Canadian Academy founded in 1913

Each of these schools serves Preschool to Grade 12 students and have large-ish student populations. They are all internationally accredited and have excellent reputations based on the quality of their educational programs, facilities and have similar enrollment compositons.

The fifth most expensive school is Nishimachi International School in Yokohama. The school, founded in 1949, offers a bilingual education to over 400 students up to Grade 9. Their average fee is a bit lower as they don't offer a high school program where fees are usually the highest.

Kansai area international schools

So now let's look even closer to our Rokko Island campus to six of our fellow schools in Kansai. These ranks are true for tuition rates for both new and returning students in 2018-19:

  1. Canadian Academy is the oldest and largest international school in Kansai and the only school with a dormitory facility.
  2. Kyoto International School is a small international school serving children from preschool to grade 8.
  3. Marist Brothers International School serves 300 students from Montessori School to Grade 12.
  4. St. Michael's International School offers a British education for children from ages 3 to 11.
  5. Osaka International School of Kwansei Gakuin offers Kindergarten to Grade 12. It shares a campus with its sister school, Senri International School, and is affiliated with a university.
  6. Osaka YMCA International School offers a PreSchool to Grade 9 program.

Yes, Canadian Academy's fees are higher than other schools in Kansai. Canadian Academy also offers much more for its students and families. Our reputation attracts families who are serious about their child's education as well as teachers with great credentials (56% with a Master's Degree), experience and enthusiasm. Our campus is larger and better equipped than our local collegial schools. Canadian Academy offers a wider range of academic choices and activities, our Pathways internship program is unique in Kansai, and the opportunity for our students to travel both within Japan and elsewhere in Asia (APAC activities) sets us apart from other schools in Kansai.


We hope you find this article informative. We are always eager to hear from you about any questions or comments you might have regarding the school's finances. Please email William Scarborough, Director of Finance and Operations.