International School Ruhr (IS Ruhr) is a private international day school in Essen for children aged 3 to 18-19, opened in 2010 in the Villa Koppers. The school describes itself as the longest-established international school in the Ruhr area and a state-recognised Ergänzungsschule funded solely by parents' fees. Lessons at all stages are taught in English; all students learn German, in the upper grades either as a native language or as a foreign language. Stages: Early Years for ages 3-6 and primary grades 1-5 follow the IB PYP, grades 6-10 follow the IB MYP (the school has been an MYP candidate since 2025), grades 11-12 the IB Diploma Programme (authorised in 2015, first graduates in 2017). Since 2013 the school has been a Cambridge examination centre and used to prepare students for IGCSE exams in grade 10. Students of more than 30 nationalities attend. The average IB Diploma score in 2021-2024 ranged from 33.8 to 36.5 with a 100% pass rate, and in 2025 it was 32 points with a 92% pass rate.
Key facts
Tuition
≈ $14 122–21 917 a year
12 500–19 400 EUR
Programmes
IB · PYP, MYP, DP
Admits from
3 years · Pre-School
Languages of instruction
English
Languages taught
German, Spanish
Registration fee
≈ $3 954
3 500 EUR
About the fees Fees for the 2026-2027 school year in EUR per year: Early Years (EY1-EY3, 8:15-15:30, Wednesdays until 12:30) 12500; grades 1-5 17700; grades 6-8 18000; grades 9-10 18000; grades 11-12 19400. Fees include online textbooks and materials, learning software and a subsidy towards school trips. IB exam fees are charged separately at IB rates. A scholarship and financial aid programme exists for grades 1-12 (not early years): a 25%, 50%, 75% or 100% reduction for a family with one child and an annual income of no more than 100000, 80000, 60000 and 40000 EUR respectively (thresholds rise by 20000 EUR with each further child); strong grades, a recommendation, an interview and an English test are required; families whose fees are paid by an employer, embassy or government are not eligible. Applications for 2027-2028 are accepted from December 2026 until 31 January 2027.
Admissions The school admits new students all year round if a place is available and the child meets the age and academic requirements. Applications go through the MySchool online platform; required are a confidential recommendation from the current school (for grades 1-12), reports from the last three school years, a copy of the passport and the vaccination record with proof of measles vaccination. Early years children must be toilet trained. For grades 1-5 the child spends up to three trial days in the prospective class before a decision. For grades 6-12 applicants first take a written entrance test in English and mathematics, then trial days, and in grades 9-12 also an interview with the head of secondary. After the contract is signed the school sets the start date. Nationality is not named as a condition: students of more than 30 nationalities attend, and the school serves both international and local families.
Stages and year groups Grades EY1-EY3, 1-12. Early Years (EY1 ages 3-4, EY2 ages 4-5, EY3 ages 5-6) and primary grades 1-5 follow the IB Primary Years Programme. Grades 6-10 follow the IB Middle Years Programme: the school has been an MYP candidate since 2025 and is not yet authorised. Grades 11-12 follow the IB Diploma Programme. Subjects in grades 6-10: English and German language and literature, mathematics, physical education, sciences, Spanish and German language acquisition, individuals and societies, design, performing arts and visual arts. Diploma Programme subjects: biology, business management, chemistry, physics, English A, geography, history, German A, German B, German Ab Initio, mathematics (applications and interpretation), Spanish B, plus TOK, CAS and the Extended Essay. After grade 10 recognition as Mittlere Reife is possible, and the IB Diploma is recognised in Germany as university entrance with the right subject combination. Cambridge: since 2013 the school has been a Cambridge International examination centre; the 2024 brochure describes IGCSE preparation in grade 10, while the current grade 6-10 curriculum is built on the MYP, with only one remaining sentence about dual IGCSE and IB exams.
Accreditations and programmes verified against official registries
IB · PYP, MYP, DP · authorised programmeThe school is listed in the IB register and runs the Primary Years, Middle Years and Diploma programmes.
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 →Exams and destinations from the school's official website
Average IB score
32 (world average 30.88)
Exam results IB Diploma average score and pass rate: 2021 33.8 and 100%, 2022 35.8 and 100%, 2023 36.5 and 100%, 2024 35 and 100%, 2025 32 and 92%; world average score in the same years 33.02, 31.98, 30.24, 30.32 and 30.58, world pass rate 88.96%, 85.85%, 79.67%, 80% and 81.26%. A testimonial mentions an Outstanding Cambridge Learner Award in 2021.
Facilities from the school's official website
·Swimming poolnot stated on the website
·Sports hallnot stated on the website
·Laboratoriesnot stated on the website
·Theatre or assembly hallnot stated on the website
✓Library
✓Catering
·School transportnot stated on the website
·Boardingnot stated on the website
Clubs and activities: Theater-Club · Choir · Klavierstunden (piano lessons) · Student Leadership · Student-led clubs
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 sizenot stated
What the listings show: The school describes its teachers as highly qualified and international; the head of school has led schools in Singapore, Australia, France, Belgium and Germany.
The team page names 33 teachers and assistants with their subjects, including the PYP and MYP coordinators, the Diploma Programme coordinator, a college counsellor, a special educational needs coordinator and a social-emotional counsellor. In secondary every student has a coach with regular one-to-one sessions.
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 roomnot stated on the website
✓Counsellor
·Child protection policynot stated on the website
·Staff trainingnot stated on the website
·Anti-bullying policynot stated on the website
First aid is given by certified staff; the school cooperates with a paediatric practice on Ruhrallee and the Elisabeth-Krankenhaus and Kliniken Essen-Mitte hospitals. Secondary has a social-emotional counsellor and a special educational needs coordinator, primary a social-emotional learning coordinator and inclusion teachers; there is an individual support programme and English as an additional language.
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 data60 Accreditation and verifiability (10%)85 Teaching staff (10%) scored on disclosed data55 Facilities (10%) scored on disclosed data65 Clubs and activities (8%) scored on disclosed data73 "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
Essen, Germany · est. 2010 · Private