ADMISSIONS POLICY AND PROCEDURE
Admissions Assessment Process
ISF has not appointed or authorized any agents or third parties to represent ISF in any way in connection with admissions activities of the Academy or the Pre-School. Please do not liaise with any third party who asks for compensation or claims to be representing ISF in the admissions application process.
Admissions Assessment Format
The assessment process in both the Primary and Secondary Schools is divided into different stages. All applicants will be invited for the first stage. After each stage, selected applicants will be invited back for the following stage.
Our Stage 1 assessments involve group discussions and group activities. All applicants must participate in Stage 1 before moving on to Stage 2. Applicants must ensure that they are able to participate in one of the indicated Stage 1 dates for their grade. While the Admissions Office will make every attempt possible to reschedule a Stage 1 group assessment for an applicant, the Admissions Office will offer at most one other alternative date and this alternative date offered will also be conducted during the Stage 1 periods stated in the following sub-sections. See the sub-section “Rescheduling an Admissions Assessment”.
The Admissions Office is not able to assess applicants who are not in Hong Kong during the periods indicated below. If applicants are not able to attend Stage 1 during the dates listed below, the application will be considered unsuccessful, the application will be closed, and no application fee will be refunded.
The Admissions Office does not conduct reassessments for applicants who are not Capital Note nominees, siblings, and children of alumni.
All applicants will be invited for Stage 1. Selected applicants will be invited back for Stage 2.
Stage 1 | Stage 2 | |
---|---|---|
Assessment
Activities |
Group Assessment (About 45 minutes)
Group Activities (Groups of 20): Half of the activities will be conducted in English and the other half in Putonghua. The applicants will be led through these bilingual activities by a Group Leader speaking Cantonese, English, or Putonghua as per the native language(s) indicated on the application form. If the applicant has indicated more than one native language, the Admissions Office has the discretion to determine which of the native languages will be used by the Group Leader. |
Parent-Child Meeting
Parents and child meet with a senior member of the school. Applicants will be interviewed primarily in their native language. Parents can elect to be interviewed in a different language (in Cantonese, English, or Putonghua) from the applicant. |
Assessment Dates | Selected dates between Wednesday, September 11 and Wednesday, September 25, 2024 | October to November, 2024 |
Notification | By Friday, December 13, 2024 |
Dates shown in the table above are correct at the time of publication. The ISF Academy reserves the right to modify these dates and periods if necessary.
All applicants will be invited for Stage 1. Selected applicants will be invited back for Stage 2.
Stage 1 | Stage 2 | |
---|---|---|
Assessment
Activities |
Group Assessment (About 1 hour)
Group Activities (Groups of 12): Half of the activities will be conducted in English and the other half in Putonghua. |
Parent-Child Meeting
Parents and child meet with a senior member of the school. Parents can elect to be interviewed in Cantonese, English, or Putonghua. Applicants will be interviewed in English and Putonghua, and if parents are interviewed in Cantonese, the interviewer may also speak Cantonese to the applicant. |
Assessment Dates | Selected dates between Friday, November 22 and Friday, November 29, 2024 | January 2025 |
Notification | By Wednesday, February 19, 2025 |
Dates shown in the table above are correct at the time of publication. The ISF Academy reserves the right to modify these dates and periods if necessary.
All applicants will be invited for Stage 1A. Selected applicants will be invited back for each subsequent stage or sub-stage.
Stage 1A | Stage 1B | Stage 2 | |
---|---|---|---|
Assessment Activities | Written Assessment
Written papers in Chinese, Chinese Mathematics, English, English Mathematics and a computerized assessment. |
Oral Assessment
Individual and Group Interviews in English and Putonghua. |
Parent Meeting
Parents meet with a senior member of the school. |
Assessment Dates | Saturday, February 22, 2025 | Thursday, March 20 to Friday, March 21, 2025 | March to April 2025 |
Notification | By Wednesday, April 30, 2025 |
Dates shown in the table above are correct at the time of publication. The ISF Academy reserves the right to modify these dates and periods if necessary.
All applicants will be invited for Stage 1A. Selected applicants will be invited back for each subsequent stage or sub-stage.
Stage 1A | Stage 1B | Stage 2 | |
Assessment Activities | Written Assessment
Written papers in Chinese, English, English Mathematics and a computerized assessment. |
Oral Assessment
Individual and Group Interviews in English and Putonghua. |
Parent Meeting
Parents meet with a senior member of the school. |
Assessment Dates | Early Application | ||
Saturday, December 7, 2024 | Thursday, January 9 to Friday, January 10, 2025 | January to February 2025 | |
Regular Application | |||
Saturday, February 22, 2025 | Monday, March 17 to
Tuesday, March 18, 2025 |
March to April 2025 | |
Notification | By Wednesday, April 30, 2025 |
Dates shown in the table above are correct at the time of publication. The ISF Academy reserves the right to modify these dates and periods if necessary.
In the event the applicant is unable to attend the scheduled admissions assessment for any reason, for example a conflict with a music examination, applicants are to inform the Admissions Office as soon as possible and no less than three business days before the date of the admissions assessment. The Admissions Office will, wherever possible, provide one alternative assessment date on one of the predetermined dates listed in the above sub-sections showing the Assessment Dates. However, please note that the Admissions Office is under no obligation to arrange another assessment and should the Admissions Office be unable to find a mutually agreed date, the application will be considered unsuccessful, the application will be closed, and no application fee will be refunded.
In the event the applicant falls ill on the morning of the assessment, parents must inform the Admissions Office prior to the assessment and a new assessment date will be given when a doctor’s note is submitted to the Admissions Office. It is highly recommended that applicants who are not feeling well reschedule their assessment date. Applicants who are not feeling well and who choose to participate in the assessment activity will not be granted another assessment opportunity.
- Parents / Legal Guardian of successful applicants are to confirm their child’s enrollment through the online Enrollment Confirmation Form before the deadline stipulated on the Admissions Offer Letter.
- At the same time, the school will issue an invoice for the Acceptance Deposit and Capital Contribution. Parents / Legal Guardian have to make the payment before the due date stated on the invoice to secure the place.
- Parents / Legal Guardian requesting Financial Aid are advised to complete all the requested documents listed in the Financial Aid Application and to submit them before the relevant date stated in the Financial Aid section. While the request for financial assistance may be made anytime during the admissions assessment process, and may also be made after the applicant has received an Acceptance Letter, only applicants who submit the Financial Aid Application before the Financial Aid deadline will be informed whether their Financial Aid application is successful as part of the Acceptance Letter Package. The school actively seeks diversity in its student body and has a need-blind admissions assessment policy.
- It is the school’s policy not to provide feedback regarding an applicant’s performance in any of the assessment.
Applicants who have been assessed but who have not been admitted are welcome to reapply for another academic year. Please note that such applicants will be asked to submit a new application form and application fee.