← Back to the rankingFranconian International School
Erlangen, Germany · est. 1998 · Private
Illustration · Erlangen
Franconian International School (FIS) is a private international day school in Erlangen for children aged 3 to 18. It was founded in 1998 in Herzogenaurach for families working for international companies in the Nürnberg-Erlangen-Fürth region: the first class had 25 students, and today there are about 750 from more than 40 countries, around one third German and half learning English as a second language. Since 2008 the school has had its own campus in Erlangen. Teaching is in English under IB programmes: the Primary Years Programme for Early Years and grades 1-5 (PYP authorisation in 2025), the Middle Years Programme for grades 6-10 and the Diploma Programme for grades 11-12; all graduates also receive the school's High School Diploma, recognised by American colleges through NEASC accreditation. German and Spanish are taught as subjects. In 2026, 88% of candidates earned the IB Diploma with an average of 34 points and a top score of 45. The school states a teacher-student ratio of one to six.
Key facts
Tuition
≈ $16 296–22 928 a year
14 425–20 295 EUR
Programmes
IB · PYP, MYP, DP
Admits from
3 years · Pre-School
Languages of instruction
English
Languages taught
German, Spanish
Students per teacher
One teacher to six students, as stated by the school.
Registration fee
≈ $384
340 EUR
About the fees Annual tuition for 2026-2027: Early Years 14425 EUR, grades 1-2 15145 EUR, grades 3-4 15865 EUR, grade 5 16585 EUR, grade 6 17280 EUR, grades 7-8 18000 EUR, grade 9 18720 EUR, grade 10 19440 EUR, grades 11-12 20295 EUR. Payment in full by 1 August or in eight monthly instalments from August to March. From the fifth consecutive full year (excluding Early Years) tuition is reduced by 5% per year. Families may apply for a fee reduction after admission (not for Early Years). Mandatory day and week-long field trips are included in tuition up to a set amount.
Admissions The school accepts students regardless of race, sex, religion, nationality or ethnic background, primarily from international families in the region; a limited number of places are open to German families who want a multicultural education, with preference for children with an international background or who are going abroad, and German native speakers are expected to have some English. The language of instruction is English; students whose first language is not English are supported by the EAL programme (Early Years 5 to grade 12), but secondary students need sufficient academic English, and non-native applicants to grades 9-11 submit TOEFL or IELTS scores. Applications are made online at any time of year with the registration fee; required are parent and school recommendations, a birth certificate and three years of reports in English or German, a writing sample from grade 6, and the Übertrittszeugnis for applicants to grade 5 from the German system. Interviews and admission tests may be required, and grade placement considers previous schooling and age. Decisions are sent by the end of June: admission, denial or a waiting pool; mid-year entry depends on space. The first six months are a probationary period.
Stages and year groups Grades EY3-EY5, 1-12. IB Continuum School: Primary Years Programme for Early Years (EY3-EY5, from age 3) and grades 1-5, Middle Years Programme for grades 6-10 (MYP Certificate; the Bavarian recognition office treats the MYP as equivalent to the Mittlerer Schulabschluss), Diploma Programme in grades 11-12 (full IB Diploma or course certificates). All graduates receive the FIS High School Diploma (24 credits in grades 9-12, CAS, PE, attendance of at least 85%). Diploma Programme courses: English A and German A (literature, language and literature), English B, German B, Spanish B, German ab initio, history, geography, business management, economics, biology, chemistry, physics, sports science, design technology, mathematics at two levels, visual arts, theatre, music.
Accreditations and programmes verified against official registries
IB · PYP, MYP, DP · authorised programmeNEASC · accreditationThe school is listed in the IB register and runs the Primary Years, Middle Years and Diploma programmes. The school is accredited by NEASC.
school is in an official registryconfirmed by a school document, by membership or by taking part in a networkclaimed by the school, no confirmation, not counted in the scoreGuide to all organisations → What stands behind each entry
IBInternational Baccalaureate
A Swiss non-profit, working since 1968. Its programmes are among the most widely recognised school programmes in the world. Authorisation is granted stage by stage, so a school with the final stage does not necessarily run the younger ones; which stages this school holds is set out in the line below.
What the badge means for this school. The school is allowed to run this programme and to award its certificate. This is a confirmation of the programme, not a judgement on the school as a whole. The entry stands in the organisation's public register - anyone can check it. At this school: PYP (ages 3-12), MYP (ages 11-16), DP (ages 16-19). PYP is the primary stage, ages 3 to 12. It is not a set of subjects but a frame for the whole school: learning is built around lines of inquiry, and there are no exams at the end. MYP is the middle stage, ages 11 to 16. There are no exams here either; at the end an optional electronic assessment of pupils' work is possible. DP is the final stage, ages 16 to 19: six subjects plus a compulsory core of theory of knowledge, an extended essay and CAS. The diploma is accepted by universities all over the world, and in a number of countries it counts for admission on the same footing as the local leaving certificate.
Register to check for yourself, and the full guide →NEASCNew England Association of Schools and Colleges
An American accreditation working since 1885. For international schools it uses an approach where the visitors look first at live lessons rather than at folders of paperwork: the team works in the school for about a week. It is the only one here whose public directory honestly separates accredited schools from candidates.
What the badge means for this school. The school has been through this organisation's accreditation. It was judged as a whole: governance, safeguarding, staff, premises, teaching. The entry stands in the organisation's public register - anyone can check it.
Register to check for yourself, and the full guide →Exams and destinations from the school's official website
Average IB score
34 (world average 30.88)
Exam results IB Diploma 2026: 62 graduates, 57 diploma candidates, 88% earned the diploma, average score 34 (world average 30.88), top score 45. Earlier years: 2025 84% and 32 points, 2024 86% and 31, 2023 94% and 31, 2022 87% and 33.
Where leavers go: Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (LMU) · Technical University of Munich · Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) · Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU) · Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin · Frankfurt School of Finance & Management · WHU - Otto Beisheim School of Management · Delft University of Technology · University of Amsterdam · Maastricht University · University of Oxford · University of Cambridge
and others, 21 universities in the school's list in allNearly all graduates go on to higher education; the school profile lists a selection of universities that have admitted them in Germany, the Netherlands, the UK, the US, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, South Korea and elsewhere.
Facilities from the school's official website
·Swimming poolnot stated on the website
✓Sports hall
✓Laboratories
✓Theatre or assembly hall
✓Library
✓Catering
✓School transport
·Boardingnot stated on the website
Also on site: Sports ground or field · Art studio · Playground
Clubs and activities: Arts & Crafts · Beginners' Crochet Club · Beginners' Knitting · Ballet · Bookbridge · Chess Club · Clay Club · Dance and Moves · Gymnastics · Experimental Street Art · FIS After School Choir · FIS Theater Production · Football Drills & Skills · GEN CEO Bootcamp · Karate Club · Model United Nations · GISST Volleyball · GISST Basketball · GISST Badminton · GISST Swimming · GISST Cross Country · GISST Table Tennis · GISST Track and Field
Teaching staff from the school's official website
·Teachers listed by namenot published
✓Teacher qualifications
·Number of teachersthe school does not say
✓Students per teacher or class sizein the key facts above
What the listings show: Teachers are recruited from around the world; all are qualified to teach their subject under German and international law, and the school runs its own professional learning programme.
The school has 225 staff, about 30 of them non-teaching (kitchen, buses, facilities, network). Learning support is provided by certified specialist teachers, and a separate team teaches English as an Additional Language.
Safety and wellbeing from the school's official website
·CCTVnot stated on the website
·Security staffnot stated on the website
·Access controlnot stated on the website
✓Nurse or medical room
·Counsellornot stated on the website
✓Child protection policy
·Staff trainingnot stated on the website
✓Anti-bullying policy
A school nurse staffs the first aid room (Monday to Thursday 8:00 to 17:00, Friday until 16:00). The school has a Head of Safeguarding and Student Wellbeing, licensed school counsellors for each age group, a safeguarding policy, a bullying prevention and response policy, a restorative approach to conflicts and a policy on smoking, alcohol and drugs. Lunch is supervised by teachers.
Reviews
No reviews yet. The community rating counts towards the score once a school has five verified reviews - until then we do not show a zero, so as not to mislead.
Criteria breakdown criterion weight in brackets
Academics and programmes (16%)95 Community rating (16%)no dataparent reviews are needed: the criterion switches on at the fifth verified one Exams and destinations (12%) scored on disclosed data80 Safety and wellbeing (12%) scored on disclosed data70 Accreditation and verifiability (10%)90 Teaching staff (10%) scored on disclosed data55 Facilities (10%) scored on disclosed data85 Clubs and activities (8%) scored on disclosed data78 "Scored on disclosed data" stands where we count only what the school has written about itself on its own site: exams and destinations, safety and wellbeing, teaching staff, facilities, clubs and activities. A low score here means the school does not write about this, not that the school does not have it: a school with good security and a sparse site will score low. A school can fill in its profile, and the score will be counted again.
The score is counted from 8 of the 9 criteria.Only those with checkable data count: programmes and accreditations from official registers, the fee from a published price list. Where it says "scored on the median", the school has no data and the middle of the list is put in its place, so that a gap gives no advantage. Admissions, teaching staff and reviews come in as their data arrives.
The full methodology → Similar schools in the country