clamspirit wrote:I don't know where you've found such an expensive school! I studied here for 6 to 8 thousand a year - and that's with the GCSE London results at the end, not some shady certificate.
Really, the most expensive "school" that charges so much is the American University in Dubai, and that's probably the only one. I suggest you get your facts straighter...
As far as payment is concerned, it is usually broken up into terms, with some part of the payment paid at the beginning, after the child was accepted in school, but I assume before he began studying. The other parts are usually paid around the first-term exams, and maybe there would be another time, and lastly, before the final exams.
That's quite poor information.
There are a lot more expensive schools here that actually provide top quality education, Dubai College and Jumeirah college are just two that have students regularly going on to Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard, etc. You get what you pay for.
If you are in the UK, UAE schools will generally allow your child to sit their entrance exams under supervision at their current UK school. Some cost is involved.
Check here as a place to start:
http://www.gsgi.co.uk/site
also:
http://www.dubaifaqs.com/schools-dubai.php
At least he was right in that you pay over three terms each year. Some schools will ask for a placeholder payment while considering your child's application, which may or may not be refundable.