This article originally appeared on our sister website, Urban Family Shanghai.

It can be tough and overwhelming to find the right school for your children, especially if you are new to a country or changing their education journey. So, we are here to help with our comprehensive list of bilingual schools in Shanghai to assist you in making the perfect choice.

Shanghai United International School, Gubei Campus

Shanghai United International School, Gubei Campus is part of the Xiehe Education Group, which is the largest independent educational provider in Shanghai. They provide high-quality international education programs offering IB Diploma and Certificate, Edexcel and IGCSE to middle and high school students. SUIS GB prepares their students to become internationally-minded, global citizens and paves the way for their entry into the world’s best universities.

Location: Minhang
Established: 2007
Age of students: 11-18
No. of students: 1000+
Nationalities: 30+
School levels: Junior / High
Curriculum: International Baccalaureate Diploma Program, IGCSE, Edexcel
Languages taught: English / German / Mandarin
Extracurricular: Includes activities with a focus on creativity, service and action
Popular compounds: 1699 Gubei / Gubei Hongyuan / Gubei International Plaza / Mandarine City

See listing for Shanghai United International School, Gubei Campus. Visit official website.

YK Pao School

YK Pao School is a pioneering international Chinese school. The school is a non-profit private institution founded in 2007, in memory of shipping magnate Sir Yue-Kong Pao, the renowned Chinese businessman, statesman and philanthropist. With over 1,500 students from China and overseas, the school offers a unique Year 1-12 educational program. Pao School’s innovative Chinese-English immersion bilingual programme nurtures the whole person — the entire emotional, social, physical, and intellectual being — and prepares students to become engaged and responsible global citizens of the 21st century.

Location: Changning & Songjiang
Established: 2007
Age of students: 6-18
Nationalities: 18+
No. of students: 1,500+
School levels: Year 1-12
Curriculum: Primary School and Middle School: Shanghai Plus Curriculum — offer an international approach to Shanghai curriculum. High School: International Plus Curriculum — IGCSE and IB Diploma programmes, complemented by core components of the Shanghai curriculum
Languages taught: English / Chinese / French
Extracurricular: Sports, performing and visual arts, Chinese cultural activities and enrichment

See listings for YK Pao School (Primary School Campus, Middle School Campus, High School Campus). Visit official website.

Adcote School Shanghai

Adcote Shanghai blends Adcote UK top-level educational system standards with excellence in Chinese culture. They have a strong focus on English improvement, offering a comprehensive list of academics (IGCSE and A Levels), educational programs and outdoors-based learning methods. Adcote also nurtures students’ talents, shaping them into strong-willed individuals with remarkable problem-solving and leadership skills, enabling them to successfully enter the 21st century’s rapidly globalizing society.

Location: Songjiang
Established: 2016
Age of students: 13-16
Nationalities: 4
No. of students: 120
School levels: Junior / Senior
Curriculum: IGCSE / A Levels
Languages taught: English / Mandarin
Extracurricular: Includes a range of club and individual activities such as sports, dance, music, art, drama, cultural and science lab

See listing for Adcote School Shanghai. Visit official website.

Blue Ribbon International School

Blue Ribbon International School (BRIS) is the only school in Shanghai associated with The John Carrol School in the State of Maryland — a ‘Blue Ribbon School’ for three consecutive years. Life in BRIS is never restricted to the classroom, as students are encouraged to explore a wide range of activities. BRIS also initiated ‘The Happiness Project’ to better assess students’ stress management and further develop the unique potential of every individual.

Location: Pudong
Established: 2016
Age of students: 15-18
School level: High
Languages taught: English / Mandarin
Extracurricular: Includes community service options as well as a wide range of individual development schemes

See listing for Blue Ribbon International School. Visit official website.

Dehong Shanghai International Chinese School

Dehong International Chinese School offers a 12 year education to Chinese nationals. Dehong is a sister school of the Dulwich College International (DCI) schools and offers a combined program comprising the Shanghai compulsory curriculum enhanced with the Dulwich educational philosophy and pedagogy. As part of the DCI family, Dehong students will have the opportunity to collaborate with their peers and benefit from DCI initiatives. These include the DCI University Counseling program and a diverse range of events. DCI’s University Counseling team are experienced in placing students in US, UK and other top universities around the world including the Ivy League, Oxbridge and other Russell Group universities.

Location: Maqiao, Minhang
Established: 2017
Age of students: 6–18 years old
No. of students: 600+
Nationalities: Chinese
School levels: K1-12
Curriculum: Shanghai curriculum + ; IBDP
Languages taught: Chinese / English
Extracurricular activities: Over 150 Qidi courses, including academics, arts, sports, STEAM and music

See listing for Dehong Shanghai International Chinese School. Visit official website.

Huili School Shanghai

Huili School Shanghai is a member of the Wellington College family of schools. Located in the New Bund district of Pudong, it is a world-class and purpose-built school, equipped with the staff and facilities to provide the very best academic and co-curricular opportunities. The academic team comprises highly-skilled international and Chinese leaders and teachers committed to delivering the Huili curriculum’s vision of holistic bilingual education. The school’s vision is to successfully combine the inherent strengths of Eastern and Western education principles, giving pupils both the ‘fish and bear’s paw’ in a truly immersive bilingual learning environment.

Location: Pudong
Established: 2018
Age of students: 6-14
No. of students: 600 (2019-2020)
School levels: Grade 1-7, will continue to enlarge its pupil body in Junior High and High School
Curriculum: Chinese national curriculum
Languages taught: Chinese / English / Spanish
Extracurricular: The pupil-centred Huili School promotes inquisitive and differentiated teaching, while endeavouring to provide an abundance of fun and engaging activities held both inside and outside the school to enrich pupils’ learning experiences.

See listing for Huili School Shanghai. Visit official website.

Lucton School Shanghai

Lucton School Shanghai is the first overseas campus of Lucton School UK. They are located in Pudong, Shanghai, and offer a full boarding coeducational school for students aged 14-18 with IGCSE and A Levels programs. Students will transit to Lucton School UK seamlessly when progressing to the second year of A Levels. The campus consists of five main buildings incorporating the Pierrepont Theatre, Grey-Thompson Sports Centre, Jotham Library, modern laboratories and design technology room, along with indoor and outdoor sports facilities. Inspiring and talented teachers create a rich academic experience that prepares students for their place in the world.

Location: Pudong
Established: 2018
Age of students: 14-18
Nationalities: 4
No. of students: 33
School levels: High
Curriculum: A Levels / IGCSE
Languages taught: English / French / German / Mandarin / Spanish
Extracurricular: Includes team and individual sports, music, art, drama and cultural academic extension activities
Popular compounds: Green City

See listing for Lucton School Shanghai. Visit official website.

Nord Anglia Chinese International School Shanghai (NACIS)

Nord Anglia Chinese International School (NACIS) Shanghai caters to students from age 6 to 18 years and is an authorized IB World School for the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program. The NACIS curriculum delivers the fundamental learning objectives of the Shanghai National Curriculum integrated with international elements through the medium of Mandarin Chinese and English. Their performing arts programme is developed in collaboration with the Juilliard School and STEAM program in collaboration with MIT.

Location: Minhang
Age of students: 6-18
No. of students: Day School capacity is 2,250, boarding capacity is 180
Nationalities: 10+
School levels: Primary / Middle / High
Established: 2016
Curriculum: Grade 1-9 Shanghai National Curriculum integrated with international elements, Grade 10-12 International Baccalaureate Diploma Program
Languages taught: Mandarin / English / Spanish
Extracurricular: Various after-school activity options including global folk art, Lego club, outdoor adventure, global maths challenge, drama club, choir, orchestra, NACIS Chinese TV station, swimming, programming and robotics, etc.

See listing for Nord Anglia Chinese International School Shanghai (NACIS). Visit official website.

Shanghai HD Bilingual School

Shanghai HD Bilingual School is a private school with a global vision for the future. HD provides a comprehensive bilingual solution for Chinese families who seek an authentic international education. Blending the best of international educational philosophy with Chinese curriculum, HD provides students with a comprehensive and balanced learning experience, where tradition meets creativity and east meets west. Rooted in traditional Chinese culture, HD Shanghai develops students to become heralds of Chinese culture to the world. We integrate high-quality educational resources and absorbing innovative educational concepts, supporting our students to understand the world and develop cross-cultural perspectives, so that they will become global citizens.

Location: Songjiang
Established: 2016 Sep.
Age of students: 18month-15yrs
No. of students: 1,000
School levels: All through curriculum from Kindergarten, Primary to Secondary, High school is in schedule (open in 2020 Sep.)
Curriculum: Kindergarten- Montessori course; Primary and Secondary- Integrated bilingual course
Languages taught: English, Mandarin

See listing for Shanghai HD Bilingual School. Visit official website.

Shanghai Pinghe Bilingual School

Shanghai Pinghe Bilingual School offers an international-based program for children in Grades 1 to 9, providing a combination of Chinese and American curriculums. Their secondary division is an International Baccalaureate World School that follows the American and IBDP curriculums in a bilingual environment. The school caters to both Chinese and international students.

Location: Pudong
Established: 1996
School levels: Early Childhood / Junior
Languages taught: English / Mandarin
Extracurricular: Includes Model United Nations, community service, radio station, newspaper, World Scholar’s Cup and spelling bees

See listing for Shanghai Pinghe Bilingual School.

Shanghai Vanke Bilingual School

Shanghai Vanke Bilingual School is part of the Dare to Dream Education Group and is an extension of the International Bilingual C Program of Fudan-Vanke Experimental Private School. The school has 10 years of experience providing bilingual education in English and Chinese and integrates Chinese and Western methods to inspire children’s unlimited potential. The STEAM center, equipped with robotics facilities, presentation center, machinery and other functional areas, cultivates students’ overall abilities and expands their experiential knowledge. The premises has the first professional rowing (crew) paddle pool with a Youth Rowing Development Center, which has become the crux of campus culture.

Location: Minhang
School levels: Early Childhood / Junior / Senior
Languages taught: English / Mandarin
Extracurricular activities: Includes STEAM, reading, rowing, speech, debate, science, math, robotics, philosophy, art, sports, gardening and horticulture

See listing for Shanghai Vanke Bilingual School. Visit official website.

[Cover image via Pexels]

Shanghai School Directory

The newly redesigned Urban Family website offers a school, healthcare and property directory, which allows users to browse through the city’s top schools, hospitals and real estate.

Check out more Shanghai schools here.

For Even More Shanghai Guides...

We all want the best for our children when it comes to education, home life and healthcare. But a bustling, buzzing city like Shanghai offers what can seem like a dizzying amount of options. That’s where the Urban Family Home & School Guide comes in.

Whether you are new to the city, moving neighborhoods, have a child transferring to a different school or working out the healthcare option that best suits you and your family, we have taken the myriad of options and laid them out in an easy-to-digest format.

Get your FREE copy of the Urban Family Home & School Guide here.

This article was originally published by our sister magazine Urban Family Shanghai. For more articles like this, visit the Urban Family website, or follow the Urban Family WeChat account (ID: urbanfamilyshanghai).