← Back to the rankingInternational School Twente
Enschede, Netherlands · est. 2008 · State
Illustration · Enschede
The International School Twente (IST) is a small, partially state-funded Dutch International School in Enschede for students aged 4 to 18. The primary school opened in 2008 as the international department of a Dutch primary school, and the secondary in 2011 as a department of a Dutch secondary school; they joined forces in 2016. All lessons are in English, and all students learn Dutch. The primary school is authorised for the IB PYP and bases language and mathematics on the National Curriculum for England, with the early years following the Early Years Foundation Stage. The secondary school runs Cambridge International programmes: Cambridge Lower Secondary in Years 7-9 and the IGCSE in Years 10-11 with exams at the end of Year 11, followed by the IB Diploma Programme in the last two years. The secondary school has about 140 students from over 30 countries.
Key facts
Tuition
≈ $5 846–8 917 a year
5 175–7 893 EUR
Programmes
IB · PYP, DP · Cambridge · Lower Secondary, IGCSE
Languages of instruction
English
Languages taught
Dutch, Spanish
About the fees Annual fees for 2026-2027: Reception to Year 6 5175 EUR, Years 7-9 6441 EUR, Years 10, 11, DP1 and DP2 7893 EUR. Fees include books and trips; extracurricular activities and exam fees are extra. Payment is by a single invoice (to the parent or employer) or in eight instalments from September to April. The school stresses that these are tuition fees, not a voluntary ouderbijdrage: government funds cover approximately half of the costs.
Admissions The school teaches in English and, under Dutch law on international schools, admits a student if one of these conditions is met: non-Dutch nationality and a parent temporarily employed in the Netherlands or a Dutch border region; Dutch nationality and at least two years of living and attending school abroad because a parent was stationed abroad; Dutch nationality and a parent who will be stationed abroad within two years for at least two years (a written statement from the parent or employer). Dutch nationals with a havo diploma or promotion to vwo 5 may apply to the IB Diploma Programme if they prove fluency in English. Enrolment is open all year: application, proof of eligibility, report cards for two years and a reference from the previous school, a meeting with admissions and a meeting with the principal. There is no language testing for primary; secondary has no entrance exam, but an intake is held and English may be tested. Students are not typically admitted directly into the IGCSE or DP exam years (Years 11 and 13). The school does not sponsor visas.
Stages and year groups Grades Reception, Year 1-11, DP1-DP2. Primary (ages 4-11, Reception to Year 6): the IB Primary Years Programme; language and mathematics based on the National Curriculum for England, early years following the Early Years Foundation Stage. Secondary (ages 11-18): Cambridge Lower Secondary in Years 7-9 (introduced in the 2026-2027 school year; English, Dutch, Humanities, Mathematics, Science, Visual Arts, Physical Education, Music), with IGCSE choices based on Checkpoint results; Cambridge IGCSE in Years 10-11 - English, Dutch, Mathematics and Music or Visual Arts compulsory, with Spanish, Economics, Geography, History, Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Physical Education as options, examined in April and May of Year 11; then the IB Diploma Programme (DP1-DP2). All teaching is in English.
Accreditations and programmes verified against official registries
IB · PYP, DP · authorised programmeCambridge · Lower Secondary, IGCSE · authorised programmeThe school is listed in the IB register and runs the Primary Years and Diploma programmes. The Cambridge register names the school as its centre: Cambridge Lower Secondary with Checkpoint tests in Years 7-9 and Cambridge IGCSE in Years 10-11.
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), 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. 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 →CambridgeCambridge International Education
Part of the University of Cambridge. It allows a school to teach the Cambridge programmes and to enter pupils for the exams. There are four stages and they are authorised separately: primary, lower secondary, IGCSE and A Level. If the stages are known they are named in the line below; if that line is missing, the school does not publish them, and the Cambridge registry does not show stages either - it gives only the name of the centre, the country and whether private candidates are accepted. Cambridge calls what it does registration rather than accreditation, and the network holds about ten thousand schools.
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: Lower Secondary (ages 11-14), IGCSE (ages 14-16). Lower Secondary is the middle stage, ages 11 to 14, with the same optional Checkpoint test at the end. IGCSE means exams at around Year 10 or 11, the British counterpart of a lower secondary leaving certificate.
Register to check for yourself, and the full guide →Exams and destinations from the school's official website
The school publishes nothing about where its leavers go: no share going on to university, no exam results, no list of universities.
Facilities from the school's official website
·Swimming poolnot stated on the website
✓Sports hall
✓Laboratories
·Theatre or assembly hallnot stated on the website
·Librarynot stated on the website
✓Catering
·School transportnot stated on the website
·Boardingnot stated on the website
Also on site: Sports ground or field · Art studio
Campus: Two sites in Enschede. Since 2016 the primary school has had its own building on Johannes ter Horststraat with an on-site gym; the second PE lesson takes place at an off-site gym with a professional PE teacher. The secondary school has its own department in a building shared with its Dutch partner school in Enschede-Zuid: shared sports grounds, science labs, music and arts classrooms, and students can buy lunch in the partner school's canteen. Students bring their own lunch. The secondary school is a TopSport Talent School with a flexible schedule for athletes. Each secondary year group goes on a trip or excursion at least once a year: Paleis Het Loo, Berlin, Brussels, a science trip to Holten. There is no boarding and no uniform.
Clubs and activities: Chess club · Debate and MUN club · Music choir / school band · IST sports club · Painting · The Music Club · Swimming · Sewing Club · Book Club · Cooking Club · Dancing
Teaching staff
The school publishes neither the number of its teachers nor their qualifications.
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
·Counsellornot stated on the website
✓Child protection policy
·Staff trainingnot stated on the website
✓Anti-bullying policy
The school has a Child Safeguarding Protocol on domestic violence and child abuse, set by the board of its primary school foundation, and an anti-bullying policy specifying whom students and parents can contact.
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%)97 Community rating (16%)no dataparent reviews are needed: the criterion switches on at the fifth verified one Exams and destinations (12%) scored on disclosed data55 Safety and wellbeing (12%) scored on disclosed data65 Accreditation and verifiability (10%)90 Teaching staff (10%) scored on disclosed data55 Facilities (10%) scored on disclosed data75 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