Kampala - Post Report Question and Answers
What is the availability of international schools? What has been your general experience with them, if any?
ISU is great and my kids love it. It is, at least, not in the city center. It is an indoor/outdoor environment so no protection from the elements really. - Jan 2024
There are many school options, most embassy families go to ISU which is in a suburb and I hear generally positive things. There are embassy families at a variety of other schools and all speak very positively of their experiences. We have been very happy with the small international school in our neighborhood. - Jun 2022
There are a couple of international schools that I would say are fine. Our children attended ISU that has PYP, MYP, IB DP programs. The school became much better and now there are more IB DP classes offered. It is not a big school, so you still feel like you need to keep an eye on children’s study, and their college applications, but other than that, ISU was the only one that was able to switch to online school right after the lockdown. ISU is part of ISSEA The International Schools of Southern and Eastern Africa; ISSEA for short, is a varsity organization that manages competitive athletic competitions and cultural conventions for its 8 member schools. Before the pandemic, students had opportunities to travel to compete in person. I hear that now they do competitions online. Our children were happy at this school. - Dec 2021
I have no experience, but many people have kids here and generally seem pleased with the schools. - Aug 2020
We have kids at the Kampala International School of Uganda (KISU) and we love it. They’re in the primary school and the kids also love it. It’s a British curriculum. I have heard people are less happy with the Upper School but I can’t comment from first hand experience. The other school is ISU located closer to Entebbe, but if you live in Kampala, it’s a an hour commute on a good day. My kids are too young for that and I was uneasy with them in a bus for that long knowing how people drive here. Their commute to KISU is 10-15 minutes. As like most posts, there is a fierce ISU vs. KISU debate and people feel strongly on both sides. Just make the decision based on what you know would be best for your kids. I should also note people are happy with Ambrosoli school as well and it’s also better located in Kampala. - Nov 2019
My son was too young, so I can't speak directly, but I heard good things generally speaking. - Oct 2019
Our kids go to International School of Uganda. We have been quite happy with the experience, especially with the junior school. The biggest issue is the distance: the kids are on the bus 45 minutes to 1.5+ hours each direction. But otherwise, it is a good school, and they have a fairly robust athletic array, as well as musicals and theatre, and more. The school is PYP/MYP/DP. They are expanding the arts offerings with the PAC coming online next year. And they are expanding their language offerings, too, to include Chinese, Lugandan, Japanese, Spanish, and French. - Mar 2019
Generally good, and widely available. Which one you choose will depend greatly on where you live. - Feb 2019
Several good international schools available. Commute times are a problem. - Jan 2019
There are several International schools. We have been very pleased with the International School of Uganda (ISU). This school is located in the Kampala suburb of Lubowa, which has less pollution than central Kampala. - Dec 2018
We adore KISU, a number of embassy families go there now. My kids never want to leave and the campus is very pretty, the commute for the kids is good as well. They offer good after school programs as well, to include basketball, soccer, swimming, Zumba, art, lego, etc. - Dec 2018
There are several choices for international schools, and deciding factor seems to be traffic. ISU is the embassy-sponsored school and where most kids go. It is located farthest from the embassy, but has a bus system in place. Some people have their drivers take their kids to school and that seems to cut down on the commute time. Ambrosoli is in the Bugolobi neighborhood and (I believe) goes up to sixth grade. KISU is in Naguru and is similar to ISU in that it is a large campus and goes all the way through high school. - Oct 2018
Friends with kids seem to like ISU and Ambrosoli. Our friends with young kids have little playgroups with other expats' kids. - Sep 2018
I have no experience, but I only hear good things. - Aug 2018
Different accredited international schools are available, from British to French to American IB curriculum. Smaller elementary Montessori-like schools and play schools/kindergarten are also available. We are particularly pleased with ISU (Int'l School of Uganda) Pre-K thru 12 grade, American accredited IB (PYP, MYP, DP), on a great green campus (35 acres) which provides an amazing and rich learning environment for kids from over 60 different country. (see school report on ISU) - Jun 2018
I have kids at International School of Uganda. We are very happy with it. The commute can be difficult but it is nice that it is a bit out of the city center so the air is very clear. The campus is gorgeous. Teachers are committed and rigorous curriculum. - Jun 2018
Our girls (2 & 3 years old) go to Kampala Community International Preschool (KCIP) in Naguru and we could not be happier. The Swan preschool in Tank Hill has similar reviews. The KICU and Ambrosoli schools have great reviews, but the waiting lists are long and they are expensive. The International School in Lubowa has a decent reputation for older kids. - Aug 2015
My kids aren't in school yet but people with older kids seem happy with the schools. - Jun 2014
International School of Uganda is the most popular with American expats, although the commute for kids there can be long. KISU (Kampala International School of Uganda) is another option. We have heard good things about both schools. We send our son to preschool at Heritage International School and are very happy there; he only goes for part-time preschool, though. But we have heard good things about the upper grades as well. It is pre-K through grade 12. - Mar 2013
I didn't have kids there at the time, but I did hear that ISK was good, though teenagers get bored and there was a drinking/drug problem. There is also a French school, a German school, several British schools like Ambrosoli (elementary). - Sep 2009
