New Delhi, India Report of what it's like to live there - 02/19/25
Personal Experiences from New Delhi, India
School Name:
American Embassy School
Background Information:
1. Are you the parent of a child(ren) attending this school? A teacher at the school? Or both?
Parent
2. What grade or grades do/did your children attend at the school? During what year(s) did they attend the school?
2022-2025, elementary, middle and high school
3. What years did you live here?
2022-2025
4. What was your reason for living in the city where the school is located (e.g., government, military, corporate, NGO, retired)?
Government
5. Are other schools available to expatriates in this city? Why did you choose this particular school?
Yes, plenty of choice
Admissions & Welcome:
1. Are the admissions and placement procedures clearly stated to prospective families, either on the school website or through other means of communication?
The admission process is clear but very time-consuming; it takes a long time to receive notification about the actual enrollment.
2. How would you rate the school's support and welcome/integration of new students and their families, and why?
The school’s support for arriving students was average. While there were many emails and meetings, important information was not communicated in our experience — for example, the iPop selection process, tickets for the Fall Festival, and the limited access to facilities. The first year was mostly a process of learning by doing or learning through frustration, as we often missed opportunities because we didn’t know they existed.
Administration & School Procedures:
1. How is the overall communication between teachers and parents, and the administration and parents? How is communication facilitated?
Communication is primarily facilitated through daily or weekly reports, which are only available on the homepage—making access quite difficult. For families with children in three different divisions, keeping track of all the information requires constant checking and remembering, which quickly becomes overwhelming.
2. Aside from school fees, are there required expenses such as uniforms, laptops/tablets, musical instruments, or field trips that parents are expected to cover? What are the approximate costs?
Yes. After-school activities can be very expensive; laptops are distributed by the school, parents have to buy insurance. Trips for sports and language acquisition for middle and high school.
Academics & Resources:
1. What personal or academic counseling resources are available at this school? Is there a dedicated college counselor at the school? Is he/she familiar with universities worldwide?
There are many counselors, all of them familiar with US universities only, no knowledge (in our experience) regarding European or Asian universities.
2. Is there before and/or after-school daycare available? What are the costs?
No. Before we arrived, colleagues who were at AES between 2015 and 2018 reported that the school used to be open for children well before the official start time. Now, students are only allowed to enter at 8:00 AM. If they arrive earlier, even by the school bus, they have to wait outside—despite the disastrous air quality.
Additionally, children are expected to be picked up and brought back for after-school events, such as class concerts, which do not take place immediately after school but have a gap in between. This makes logistics extremely difficult for working parents.
3. Does the school have a library? How large is it? How updated are the books? Can students borrow books to read at home?
Yes. Two libraries: for elementary and middle/high school. Good choice of books in English and other languages.
4. What are the technology requirements for students? Do they need their own laptops/ipads? How is technology integrated into the classroom and homework?
No, the school provides notebooks. There is a lot of technology involved, especially in high school
5. How are information technology resources at the school. Are they up-to-date? Is there a computer lab?
Yes, absolutely. Not sure about the computer lab.
6. Describe the physical education resources at the school. Is there a gym? A swimming pool? Are there playing fields or tennis courts available?
PE is a major challenge at AES, as the school was not designed for the current number of students and cannot accommodate all the necessary sports programs. An additional issue is the devastating air quality, which often prevents children from going outside, leading to frequent cancellations of sports activities.
The school has only two gyms and one swimming pool, which are not sufficient for the student body. Outside of school, participating in sports is nearly impossible due to traffic, pollution, and poorly maintained sports facilities. As a result, school sports will likely be the only opportunity for your child to stay active during your time in India.
7. What is the approximate teacher-to-student ratio in the grades that your child attended?
Depends on grade level. It can be 1 to 20 in elementary, some courses 1 to 5 in high school.
8. Are Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) courses available in upper grades? If this is an IB school, is the full diploma required of all students?
Yes, both options are available, full IB is not required for all students.
9. Are students generally challenged appropriately by the curriculum? Please describe any particular strengths or weaknesses in this area. Do you have any thoughts how the curriculum is applied and implemented at this school?
Definitely challenging in high school, not so in middle school. I find middle school to be particularly weak.
10. Is the amount and type of homework generally appropriate for the age and grade of the students?
Depends on grade level and teacher.
11. What fine arts electives are available (music, drama, visual arts)?
All of them. The choice is great.
12. Are the teachers at the school required to speak English as a first language--or at least fluently?
Yes, all teachers speak English. In elementary, not all homeroom teachers speak English as their first language.
13. What services are available for gifted/advanced students at the school? Please describe your experience with these services, if applicable.
No such service is available.
14. What services are available for students with learning disabilities at this school? Please describe your experience with these services, if applicable.
Plenty for additional fee; there is a special program which was introduced few years ago. No experience.
15. What services are available for students with physical disabilities at this school? Please describe your experience with these services, if applicable.
It is not easy to get around campus, not all areas are wheelchair accessible. But there are people who can help.
16. What services are provided for speakers of English as a second language at this school? Please describe your experience with these services, if applicable.
Additional English lessons are available for children who don't have sufficient language skills.
17. What extra-curricular activities (including sports) are available at this school? Have your children participated in these activities? What activities do you feel are missing at the school?
On paper, there are countless options for after-school activities. However, in reality, iPop placements are assigned by teachers, and it seems that students’ preferences are not taken into account.
Sports programs are highly competitive—after just one month, students who are not top performers are removed from the team and are then unable to participate in any sports for the rest of the season.
Social & Emotional Well-Being:
1. What is the climate for LGBT+ kids at this school? Are there resources they can draw upon? Does there appear to be any exclusionary behavior?
No problem; the climate for all kinds of groups is especially important for the school.
2. Do expatriate students socialize with local students at the school? Are both groups successfully integrated into the school culture?
Approximately 30% of the students at AES are from Korea, and they seldom integrate or interact with others. Not all of them speak English fluently, which creates additional barriers. Similarly, their parents are not well integrated into the broader international community.
3. Are there are any problems with exclusionary behavior, cliques, or bullying at this school? Please describe any problems your children may have experienced in this area.
Yes, it is an issue. At school and in the classes, the idea prevails that everyone has to belong to a clique. It is very difficult to move from one group to another. New children have to find their own group. It's not like other international schools where everyone plays together.
4. What can you say about diversity among the faculty and staff at the school and their experience in supporting minority students?
The faculty is diverse; USA teachers prevail. The staff is mostly from India.
Overall Impressions:
1. What letter grade (ranging from A, excellent, to F, fail) would you assign to this school based on your overall experience? Would you choose it again?
C-D
You have to have luck with the homeroom teacher or with the teachers in general. If that fits and the group is good, the children feel comfortable. However , there are also really unprofessional teachers who continue to be employed despite justified complaints. For example, one math teacher announced shortly before the exams that he would not be able to teach all the necessary material. And another teacher didn't seem to know what the IB requirements were, so students had to pick them out themselves and adapt their work to them.
2. Please describe some of your child's/children's highlights and challenges during their time at this school.
Travels with the sports teams.
3. Please tell us anything else you think prospective parents and students should know about this school. Thanks for your contribution!
Be prepared for the fact that there are many different rules. Many of them don't make sense to me. The guards don't know what the management has decided and won't let the children in or out. Nothing is easy, access to the administration is not easy. Many suggestions are blocked. You have to be careful with IB, the failure rate and the average score can vary greatly from year to year.
