Formerly known as The Embassy of India School, International Indian School Riyadh (IISR) was founded in 1982 and is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year.

The story so far...

The International Indian School, Riyadh (IISR) (originally known as the Embassy of India School, Riyadh) celebrated meeting the requirements of its community on its fortieth anniversary in 2022. Founded on 9th October 1982, the school has grown from strength to strength. IISR continues to be supported through the involvement of the Indian Embassy under the patronage and guidance of H.E. Dr Ausaf Sayeed, Ambassador of India to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Patron of the school. IISR operates as an English medium school, with separate sections for boys and girls.

Perhaps a little confusingly, IISR is one of several schools in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, all of whom are mandated to bear the same name. The International Indian Public School in Riyadh, although operated separately, also comes under the purview of the Indian Embassy. Each school is bound by the same supervisory and operational rules under the Charter Rules.

The school is led by Ms. Meera Rahman, M.Sc, B.Ed and PG Diploma in Educational Administration and Supervision. She is supported by a team of almost 200 teachers, and this provides a teacher:student ratio of 1:30, indicating a student body of close to 6,000.

What about the curriculum?

IISR is affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education (C.B.S.E), New Delhi, India and is licensed under the Ministry of Education, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. 

The school prepares its students for the All India Senior Secondary and Secondary School Examination conducted annually. The core subjects offered for Grades I-XII include English (First Language), Mathematics, Science, Social Science, Environmental Education, Health and Physical Education, Arts Education/Fine Arts, Computer Science/Work Experience, Saudi History and Culture, Compulsory Arabic, and one of Islamic Studies/Moral Science/General Knowledge. Hindi as the second language is offered from Grades I – VIII) together with options for Arabic/ Urdu/ Malayalam/ Tamil/ Marathi/ Kannada/ French/ Telugu as a third language for Grades III to  VIII, whilst students in Grades IX and X have a slightly narrower choice  of Arabic/ Urdu/ Malayalam/ Tamil/ French/ Hindi  as a second language. 

For students entering their final two years of studies leading to the AISSE, the school (unusually for many internationally-based Indian curriculum schools in our experience) offers all three streams.

Students wishing to follow the Science stream study Compulsory English, and a range of option choices  from Physics/ Biology/ Chemistry/ Mathematics, and Physical Education/ Computer Science/ Fine Arts and Home Science (the latter for girls only apparently).

The Commerce stream offers choices from Compulsory English, and choices from Business Studies/ Accountancy/  Economics, and Mathematics/ Informatics Practices/ Physical Education/ Fine Arts and Home Science.

The third stream of Humanities subjects

includes Compulsory English, and choices from History/ Political Science/ Fine Arts, and Physical Education/ Economics and Home Science. 

In addition to a focus on high academic standards, IISR also offers a range of co-curricular activities to encourage students to grow their talents and to develop a balanced personality, including Declamation, Debate, Elocution, Essay writing, Exhibitions, Recitation, Quiz, and Sports. The school offers both a Sports Academy and Cricket Academy specifically to support students interested in developing their skills.

What about academic achievement?

We were delighted to see the IISR provides a detailed breakdown of its students’ achievements in both the Grade X and Grade XII CBSE examinations, although the most recent ones available are from 2021. They also provide details of the School Toppers for the same year. 

For the Grade XII examinations in 2021, a total of 422 students appeared for and passed the AISSE. Of these, 83 students achieved above 90%, with 327 students achieving First Class with Distinction, whilst 94 students achieved First Class and one student achieved a Second Class pass. 

What about the facilities? 

The school is set on a large campus of over 26600 sq. mtrs. In addition to some 200 classrooms, IISR offers a range of specialist facilities including 9 computer laboratories, separate Physics and Biology Laboratories, and specialist Fine Arts classrooms.

The school is particularly proud of its Auditorium/Multipurpose Hall, with a capacity to accommodate more than 1,000, that has facilities for indoor events, meetings, performances and celebrations, providing furnished seating, Audio/Video equipment and stage facilities. It also functions as a venue for Science Exhibitions, Board Examinations, Drama Events, Choir-Orchestral practices and Indoor Sports events. 

The school sports infrastructure is also designed to support a range of activities and includes a Badminton hall with standard 5 court, a Table Tennis hall equipped with 3 tables, a Volleyball standard synthetic court with floodlights and fencing, a Long tennis synthetic court, a cement Basketball court, a standard asphalt Football Field, a 200 meters athletics track and a Billiards room.

The Buzz

International Indian School, with its long history, is a clearly a landmark for CBSE education in Riyadh, offering a broad range of subjects at an affordable fee level.

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What about the Fees?

Tuition fees at IISR are paid on a monthly basis throughout the 12 months of the year. 

Fees for Lower KG to Grade II are 335 SAR per month (4,020 SAR per annum), from Grade III to V 335 SAR per month (4,020 per annum), from Grade VI to VIII 360 SAR per month (4,320 SAR yearly), for Grade IX 360 SAR per month for 11 months with one additional payment of 390 SAR (4,350 SAR per year, for Grade X 360 SAR for 11 months plus one additional payment of 935 SAR (4,895 SAR per annum), for Grade XI 410 SAR for 11 months plus an additional payment of 445 SAR (4,955 SAR annually), and for Grade XII, 11 payments of 410 SAR, and one additional payment of 1,040 SAR (5,550 SAR annually).

In addition to the tuition fees, there is a fee of 50 SAR per admission form, a non-refundable Entrance Fee for the entrance test of 100 SAR per child both prior to admission, together with  a non-refundable admission fee of 500 SAR per student, and a non-refundable development fund fee of 1,000 SAR for the first child, 750 SAR for the second child and and SAR 500 for the third and subsequent child, both fees charged at the time of admission.

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