Wellington College International Bangkok Review
This all-through, co-ed school is an export of the elite British boarding school, Wellington College UK. WCIB opened in 2018 with a junior school for pre-nursery through to Year 6, and has since opened its senior year groups. At full operation, the school capacity is 1,500 students, and it offers a very British education to girls and boys from all nationalities.
WCIB is part of the growing international Wellington family, which also includes schools across China in Shanghai, Tianjin, and a campus in Hangzhou. As well as fully embracing the educational ethos and traditional values of the 160-year-old Wellington brand, WCIB has built on its international links to become a ‘global campus’.
The school says,
“As a result of being part of such a diverse and exciting group of schools, opportunities for staff and pupils are numerous but include students exchanges, cultural trips and collaborative learning opportunities. Pupils of Wellington College International School Bangkok will also benefit from our international links as the Wellington Family continues to grow.”
The name ‘Wellington’ has a reputation for its rigorous academic curriculum, and parents can expect the same at WCIB. The school says that WCIB “brings the best of British education with a strong emphasis on Wellington College values to a Thai context”.
Located in the bustling Saphan Sung district of Bangkok, WCIB feels a long way from the UK’s 400-acre parkland campus in southern England, and it has a very modern, purpose-built campus. At the helm is founding headteacher Christopher Nicholls who is known by the Wellington traditional title of ‘Master’.
The curriculum
WCIB offers a well-established pathway to Western higher education. An education here starts with the UK’s Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) curriculum for ages 2 to 5, and this has a very play-based approach. Throughout the pre-prep and prep schools, students follow the National Curriculum for England for literacy, mathematics, and phonics. In all other subjects, they follow the International Primary Curriculum (IPC), which is known for its creative and thematic approach to teaching and strong focus on personal learning goals.
In senior school, students study for their IGCSEs, and then A Levels in the sixth form.
As well as preparing students for exam success, WCIB talks a lot about encouraging a life-long love of learning and “nurturing and developing the whole child”. Activities inside and outside the classroom focus on the Wellington Identity, which guides children to be Intellectual, Independent, Individual, and Inspired. The timetable also features a well-being programme of lessons, sessions, workshops, and discussions that focus on six aspects: having and maintaining physical health; developing positive relationships; building emotional resilience; maintaining a healthy curiosity about the world; understanding and promoting ways of living sustainably; and working out our responses to the questions that life asks of us.
Sport and the arts
Sport is an integral part of the curriculum at WCIB, and there is a strong competitive sports programme. Arts classes focus on drama, dance, music, creative writing, art, and design, while diverse music lessons span classical, rock, jazz, and pop; students are encouraged to display their talents at plays, concerts, and recitals throughout the academic year.
Beyond the classroom
WCIB offers an extensive programme of extra-curricular activities, which are optional. The school says the ECAs are,
“An exciting opportunity for our students to try new activities, cultivate new interests and develop skills and aptitudes which will help with their personal and academic development.”
The school has a “thriving House system”; students are allocated to a House that is “very much their home in the college." As well as taking part in House events such as swimming galas and creative competitions to win points, students have the opportunity to become Head of House and take on additional responsibilities.
The campus
The school is located in Krungthep Kreetha, halfway between Bangkok city centre and Bangkok International Airport, next to the Unico Grande golf course.
Admission and fees
Annual fees range from THB 592,500 to 905,000. Applications can be made all year round for all year groups.
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