ADMISSION CRITERIA & PROCEDURES

CRITERIA FOR ADMISSION

To be eligible for admission, your child must have lived outside the country of Korea for three or more years or you (parent) must hold a foreign passport.  A student holding a Korean passport and/or a foreign passport and wishing to apply for the three-year exemption to enter GSIS must first submit proof of three-year residency outside Korea. When assessing your child’s application, GSIS considers prior academic records,  entrance exam results, reference letters, and the possible need for additional support services. 

To be admitted to the Pre-Kindergarten program, a student must be four years of age before the start of the school year. Kindergarten applicants must be five years old by the first day of the school year. Grade one applicants must be six years old by the first day of school of that school year. Generally, the school will not enroll a student who will be over the age of twenty at the time of his or her graduation.

 
SPECIAL CRITERIA FOR ADMISSION TO THE ESL PROGRAM

General

GSIS is committed to appropriately placing students in programs where they will be able to comprehend the academic language and will experience success. All applicants should complete the GSIS supplication file and schedule a day of testing and/or residence interview. It is necessary to complete all sections of the Home Language Survey and the Educational and Personal Background section. This initial meeting with the parents/guardians present is the best time to obtain information. Initially, all applicants complete diagnostic reading, math, and writing assessments.

If a student scores two or more grade levels lower on the reading comprehension assessment than his/her targeted entry grade level, then he/she is given an oral language proficiency test and a written grammar test. The results along with the Home Language Survey, the Educational and Personal Background information, the transcripts, the writing sample and the math test are forwarded to the grade level principal who in consultation with an ESL specialist will review the data and make a decision on the most appropriate placement for the student. Prospective students requiring additional diagnostic assessment may need to return to GSIS for a second day to complete the process.

GSIS Elementary School ESL Program

Students are enrolled in the Elementary GSIS ESL program if English is not their mother-tongue language and if their English language skills in listening, speaking, reading, or writing are significantly below that of their grade level. English proficiency is based on several measures including: standardized assessments in oral/aural skills, reading and writing; prior academic records; and personal interviews. Students may receive pull-out instruction, inclusionary instruction in the classroom, or a combination of the two.

Six levels, “ A” through “F”, of English language proficiency are established in the elementary school. All students who demonstrate language skills at Level A attend regular ESL classes to develop communication skills with commonly used English vocabulary and phrases. However, only students in grades three through five continue to attend ESL classes once they have reached Levels B through D in all three areas (oral communication, reading, and writing). Students in grades Kindergarten through grade two at Levels B through D receive the continued benefit of extensive language instruction in their regular classrooms. Decisions as to whether or not a student with a combination of levels E and F in the three areas will attend ESL classes will be made on an individual basis. However, those students will continue to be monitored for progress. If they do not make adequate progress, they may begin to receive ESL services again. Students who have previously received ESL services and now score at Level F in all three areas are considered "monitored” ESL students." They are monitored for two semesters, after which time they are reassessed for the purpose of exiting them from the program.

GSIS Middle School ESL Program

In the Middle School ESL program, GSIS identifies six levels of English language proficiency. Students who demonstrate English language skills at Levels 1, 2 or 3 will be enrolled in Language B English and content-based sheltered courses. Students who demonstrate English language skills at Level 4 or Level 5 will be enrolled in Language B English Advanced and sheltered instruction courses. Students who demonstrate English language skills at Level 6 will be placed in mainstream courses and monitored for two semesters by the ESL Department for consistent progress in English language proficiency. After two academically successful semesters in mainstream courses, students will be officially exited from the ESL program. At the eighth grade level, GSIS offers ESL services only to Levels 4 and 5; beginning level ESL students are only accepted in grades six and seven.

GSIS High School ESL Program

At the high school level, GSIS generally does not accept new students who cannot succeed in mainstream courses. However, a small sheltered ESL program is maintained for those students coming to us from GSIS middle school who have not yet transitioned into mainstream courses. As with middle school students, high school students who have transitioned into mainstream courses are monitored and reevaluated for continued progress after two semesters.

SPECIAL CRITERIA FOR ADMISSION OF

STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS

General

Children with mild to moderate special needs will be considered for admissions to GSIS.  Each student in need of support services will be considered on the basis of whether GSIS can meet his/her learning needs.  Students are served in mainstream classrooms and receive support services which focus on accommodation of individual needs, skill development and academic support.  Children’s progress will be reviewed by the School Resource Team (SRT) meetings throughout the year.
 
Children’s programming and placement at GSIS may need to be altered depending on their academic progress and/or progression of their learning needs.  Applicants must include testing results and most recent Individual Education Plan (IEP) if applicable.

 

PRIORITY SYSTEM

Based on the school’s mission, qualified students are considered for admissions to GSIS according to the priority system outlined below.
1. GSIS staff children
2. Ethnically non-Korean children who do not speak the Korean language
3. Ethnically Korean children who do not speak the Korean language
4. Applicants who have a sibling already at GSIS
5. Ethnically non-Korean children who are academically proficient in the Korean language
6. Ethnically Korean children who are academically proficient in the Korean language
 

REQUIRED DOCUMENTATION AND PROCEDURES FOR APPLICATION
 

APPLICATION FORM    A current GSIS application form, completed, and signed.
 
PROOF OF STAYING OVERSEAS    Korean law requires three-year residency outside Korea.

SCHOOL RECORDS    School records for the last three years i.e. report cards, (high school students must provide official transcripts), standardized test scores, any psychological testing results, and any report of special services received.  (Translation of grades and reports required if coming from a non-English school)

RECOMMENDATION LETTERS      Two recommendation letters from previous school.    
 
HEALTH HISTORY RECORD    A completed GSIS health form that includes: health information, a comprehensive physical examination, record of immunization, and evidence of a negative tuberculosis screening .  No student may start classes without these documents on file at GSIS.            
    
PASSPORT & FOREIGN REGISTRATION CARD   A copy of your child’s and your passports, and/or a foreign registration card.
 
INDIVIDUAL SCREENING    Some school candidates may be required to have an individual screening and interview with a principal, a counselor and/or resource teacher.  The school reserves the right to request additional diagnostic testing or a full evaluation before a decision is made for any student Pre-K through grade 12.
 
APPLICATION FEE    Payment of ￦300,000 nonrefundable application fee.  This fee must be paid and the receipt must be submitted with the application form.
 
SPONSORING ORGANIZATION PAYMENT  If fees and/or tuition will be paid by a sponsoring organization,  the school requires written documentation from the organization.
 

TIMETABLE FOR ADMISSIONS
 

FIRST SEMESTER ADMISSION    If you are interested in having your child admitted for the first semester of an academic year (beginning in August), you are encouraged to complete the application procedure between February and May. Due to summer leave, no admission decisions are made in July.
 
SECOND SEMESTER ADMISSION    If you are interested in having your child admitted for the second semester (beginning in January), you are encouraged to complete the application procedure by December 1.  
 
 

ADMISSION DECISIONS

 ADMISSIONS COMMITTEE    Once all the required documentation has been received, your child’s folder is sent to the admissions committee for a decision.  The decision may call for acceptance, denial, or placement on a wait list.
 
LETTER OF ACCEPTANCE    If your child is accepted, you will receive a formal letter of acceptance along with a tuition statement. No student will be able to begin classes unless all tuition and fees are paid.
 
WAITING LIST   A candidate is placed on a wait list when he or she is eligible for admission, but there is currently no space in the grade for which he or she is applying.   Given the school’s admission priority system, a student’s position on the wait list may change if there are subsequent applications from families with higher priority. 

Once the second semester enrollment is finalized, students interested in applying for the following year must submit an updated application with current documentation.  It is important that if your child is wait listed, you explore other educational alternatives while awaiting a decision from GSIS.
 
ADMISSIONS DENIED    Each year some students are denied admission on the basis of their academic and/or behavioral record; when their English language proficiency does not meet the requirements of the grade to which they are applying; or when GSIS lacks spaces or a program to meet their individual needs.  Denied candidates may reapply once the reason for the denial has been addressed.
 

For further information please contact the Office of Admissions at admissions@gsis.sc.kr