Cairo - Post Report Question and Answers
What is the availability of international schools? What has been your general experience with them, if any?
Excellent international schools. The Cairo American College for K-12 is seen as fantastic and has a great campus. Many options for schools. - Aug 2022
We do not have children, but families rave about the international school options including Cairo American College, the British School, the Irish School, and Kompass. - Mar 2022
There is an American school in Maadi that most kids go to that is good. They are internationally recognized and offer a good curriculum. - Dec 2021
Cairo American College in Maadi is the most popular/attended one. There is also a British School that some attend as well. There are currently a few homeschooling families as well. - Feb 2021
I hear CAC is a really great school, but without children of my own it's hard for me to comment. - Jan 2020
Lots of good choices. Most US embassy kids go to the Cairo American College in Maadi. There is also a British School and others. CAC is great from what I hear with good facilities. We don't have kids there yet. - Jan 2018
I hear very good things about the international school in Cairo, though I cannot speak from direct experience. - Sep 2017
Excellent. British, American, French, German all available plus others. - May 2017
Our child was in preschool while we were there. Most people with school age kids seemed fairly happy with CAC, although the consensus was that it's gone downhill somewhat since the revolution. The campus is big, and very nice. Some families sent their kids to MBIS, a British school, and were happy with it. I visited and found it odd that it was right next to a big, very dusty quarry - would not want my child breathing that during outdoor time. - Jan 2016
Most Embassy families use Cairo American College in Maadi. We had our kids there and were overall very happy. The teaching staff are solid and overall excellent. The administration is the weak link. Our experience was that of a very "hands off" attitude with the parents. - Jan 2016
Great schools! Our kids go to Cairo American College (CAC). Some families use the British School. As for CAC, we are very pleased with academics and after school activities. Our children are involved in Girl Scouts, swim team, pottery, running, soccer, baseball, origami, painting, recycled toys, violin, strings orchestra, etc. etc. It has been wonderful. Our three children are in the elementary school and I have nothing but praise to sing to the school. - Oct 2014
CAC is in Maadi. I homeschool so we can be close to the Embassy and have dinner together as a family. There are not acceptable English alternatives in the downtown area (Zamalek/Garden City) so most families with school-aged children have no real choice but to live in Maadi. - Aug 2014
Our kids are at Cairo American College which is still a great school despite some upheaval with two revolutions. The school has had to accept more local kids to offset declining enrollment due to political unrest/businesses downsizing footprint in the region...therefore, the school is less "International"...the school has done a commendable job keeping things going despite evacuations of kids and staff, fluctuating enrollment figures. There are many other schools to choose from... - Aug 2014
I believe that CAC is by far the best school here, and has been well established for 60 years or so. No problems, lots of activities offered because of the size. - May 2014
CAC is the one saving grace to Cairo! - Mar 2014
CAC is getting better, most people are very happy there. It has had quite a few terrible years and has survived on the reputation it had 10 years ago, but this year they got a lot of new leadership and it seems to be turning a corner. MBIS is also well liked by people. - Jul 2013
Our son was in preschool and LOVED it -- there are a ton of preschools in the Maadi area where most families live. The American school is in the same area, but I can't comment on it. - Jul 2013
American, British and Canadian schools, probably others. I don't have any experience with them. - Jun 2013
Most children and teenagers go to Cairo American College in Maadi. The school has a great reputation and students have a variety of extracurricular activities that take them to other countries in the region - a great experience. The expat community is huge here, so there are students from all over the world. - Jun 2013
CAC is the school my children attend. It is a mixed bag. Athletic opportunities are decent; some people have issues with the math program. Overall, I would give it a B to a B+. - May 2013
CAC is having difficulty staffing with quality educators post-revolution. - May 2013
CAC is the school we used, and it was fine. It has a lovely campus and lots of extra-curricular activities. My kids were happy with the school. - May 2013
CAC is the school that most members of the American community send their kids to. That said, people also send their children to the Lycee Francais and to the British School, also in/near Maadi. Beyond that, I can't contribute much, not having kids. - Feb 2013
There are a number of them, including a British school and an American school. Parents, by and large, seem satisfied, although some have told me that the quality of education and student body compositions have changed significantly since the revolution. I can't really speak to that, as I arrived after Mubarak's ouster. - Feb 2013
The school is either hit or miss. Since the revolution, the CAC cannot retain quality teachers, at least not a lot of them. Yes, some are good, but MANY are far from it. Had we to do this over again, there is no way we would bid on this post. - Mar 2013
They ain't what they used to be. As a result of the departure of a number of expats, the quality of CAC has diminished in comparison to pre-revolution standards. Our family worries about the safety and security of our children because the school appears to have less security than USAID and the Embassy. - Mar 2013
Adequate but extraordinarily expensive. As long as your employer is paying that is not a problem; but don't expect the programs to match up seamlessly with programs in the US, such as how math is taught. - Feb 2013
Cairo American School seems to be the only good thing about this post. It is extremely large and is an excellent school with excellent staff. The expat kids are very well behaved---in contrast to the Egyptian children. - Jan 2013
I can only speak of Cairo American College (CAC), where our children go. We have two in elementary, one in middle and one in high school. The children love the school. I think that they are adequately challenged and like the smaller class sizes (vs the US). There is a great community within the school - great since the school is also one of the FEW green spaces where children can play at freely! It is a secure compound (you need to scan-in a badge to enter). There are afterschool activities --- even for elementary! The older children have some amazing travel opportunities with their classes. One problem I see is that they really seem like they have TOO much happening - and with 4 children in 4 different sections of school, it feels like a full-time job to read all correspondence from the school. That being said, they also tell you of events with short notice! - Nov 2012
Cairo American College is large and has a great reputation. Although I had no personal experience with it, I knew many parents who sent their kids there, and I wouldn't hesitate to send my son there when he is school age. - Sep 2011
My daughter graduated from Cairo American College and my son still attends there. It is a top-notch IB school. CAC is one of the big draws attracting Americans to serve here. - Aug 2011
Several international schools and universities of varying degrees. - Aug 2011
My kids attend Cairo American College, and we've had excellent experiences at both the high school and elementary levels. The school also has an on-line school program which they used during the early months after the revolution began in January 2011. For elementary school, it was great in terms of how much they were able to provide on line, but of course it's more labor intensive at that age for the parents. The high school kids were able to do a lot on their own. In any case, as disruptive as last year was, the kids didn't miss out on school contact. Other schools include Maadi British International School, American International School, British International School Cairo. Make sure to check out the location in relation to where you are going to live. They all have buses, but kids can spend a lot of time in the bus. - Jul 2011
Their are two schools used by embassy personnel. CAC (Cairo American College) is an extremely respected private school more commonly used. Their is also AIS (American International School) which is the second choice. I attended CAC and my brother and sister did too. We liked it, it's located in a quiet part of Cairo with housing located all around it. Its academics are highly regarded and its sports teams are quite competitive. It's an American curriculum K - 12. It offers full IB and various AP courses. Sports include Water Polo, Soccer, Baseball, Softball, Basketball, Tennis, Swimming, Cross Country and Track. (Seniors graduate at the foot of the Sphinx near the Great Pyramids, an amazing ceremony!) - Jun 2011
The international school makes this a good choice for families. - Sep 2010
CAC is a fabulous school. One of the very few good things about this place. - Jun 2010
The Cairo American College (pre-K through 12) has an excellent reputation. There is also a British school and probably some other international schools. - Dec 2009
Our kids go to the Maadi British International School and we love it. Our older son is gifted and the only thing that CAC would do for him was to put him up a grade, which he was not ready for. MBIS challenges him while letting him stay with his peers. MBIS has a lovely football field/outdoor play area, plus an indoor pool, new buildings with state-of-the-art touch boards and computer equipment. They have a cooking classroom and art and music facilities that rival the best US schools I've seen. Both of my boys love being there. - May 2008
