Best schools in Vienna
Education in Vienna
Besides the more obvious international schools, bilingual schools are an option for international and local students alike. There are 10 German/English VBS (Vienna Bilingual Schooling programme) schools in the city, four of them on the east side of the Danube and six in the older western area of the city. The schools start with primaries and continue until the end of upper secondary. All teach the first two years of language and literacy in their native language and then switch to their second language for the following two years. The remainder of the curriculum is taught either in German or bilingually, with each class having a German-speaking teacher and a native English-speaking one. Before acceptance, there is an assessment of each child's language skills and ability to cope in a second language, socially as well as academically.
There is also the other less immersive option of the Global Education Primary Schools (GEPS), which are normal German-speaking primaries, with one hour of the daily curriculum taught in English by a native speaker. These are also located in districts on both sides of the river.
Public schooling is separated into four years of primary (Volksschule) and eight years of secondary (Gymnasium). Students have the option of either academic or vocational training courses for the final four years. To make life easier for families, there is no catchment area for each school, so you can send your child to any school that has a place and will accept them.
Choosing a school in Vienna
Deciding whether to choose the public school system will almost certainly depend on the age of your child and how long you intend to stay. It is always easier for younger children to assimilate a different language and culture, but you do have to consider the potential problems of transitioning at a later stage.
Older children (unless they have a German parent or the language is spoken at home) will face a more complicated set of problems moving into a school where not only the language - but also the curriculum - is unknown to them. In addition, Austrian schools tend to have a more regimented approach than international or bilingual ones.
Most of the international schools offer the IB Diploma as a graduating qualification, with others providing the alternative of the US High School Diploma – or a French curriculum.
