← Back to homeColégio Espanhol Santa Maria Minas - Unidade Cidade Nova
Belo Horizonte, Brazil · est. 1985 · Private
Illustration · Belo Horizonte
Colégio Espanhol Santa Maria Minas - Unidade Cidade Nova is a Catholic private school in the Cidade Nova district of Belo Horizonte, one of the 13 schools of the Rede de Colégios Santa Maria Minas, run by Sociedade Mineira de Cultura (the Archdiocese of Belo Horizonte, which also runs PUC Minas university). The network traces its history to the Colégio Santa Maria founded by French Dominican sisters in 1903; the Cidade Nova school itself opened in January 1985. In 1999, under an agreement (convênio) between Sociedade Mineira de Cultura and the Spanish Ministry of Education, it became Colégio Espanhol Santa Maria, and it has carried its current name since 2018. It is the only school of the network listed in the official register of Spanish schools abroad. The school runs the Brazilian curriculum from nursery (Educação Infantil, from Maternal) to the 3rd year of Ensino Médio and, under the agreement with Spain, adds the Spanish curriculum: "o mesmo currículo escolar utilizado na Espanha, com proficiência na língua espanhola e as certificações ESO, equivalente ao Ensino Fundamental e Bachirellato, ao Ensino Médio" ("the same curriculum as in Spain, with proficiency in Spanish and the ESO certificate, equivalent to Ensino Fundamental, and the Bachillerato, equivalent to Ensino Médio"). The school says these certificates are valid throughout Europe without further recognition. It belongs to the RED de Centros, a group of six schools working with the education office of the Spanish Embassy in Brazil. Teaching is in Portuguese (all pages for parents, the admission rules and entrance tests are in Portuguese) and in Spanish in the subjects of the Spanish curriculum; English is taught through the network's PILI programme. Younger pupils study in a single morning or afternoon shift; upper Ensino Médio classes also have afternoon lessons. The network holds a foreign universities fair (Mostra de Universidades Estrangeiras) for older pupils. There is catechesis for First Communion and Confirmation, a chaplaincy and a choir.
Key facts
Programmes
Spanish programme · National programme
Languages of instruction
Portuguese, Spanish
Registration fee
≈ $12
60 BRL
Admissions Registration with the network is open to all candidates ("estarão abertas a todos os candidatos"), online only, for one chosen school of the network; the registration fee is 60 reais. Siblings of current pupils register before everyone else. Age for nursery and Year 1 is counted at 31 March: Maternal II - 2 years, Maternal III - 3 years, 1.º Período - 4 years, 2.º Período - 5 years, 1.º Ano - 6 years. From Maternal to Year 2 there is no written test: the family and child attend a meeting with the school (Momento de Interação com a Escola), and places go in order of registration. From Year 3 of Ensino Fundamental to Year 3 of Ensino Médio there are entrance tests: Portuguese and mathematics (Years 3-7), Portuguese, essay and mathematics (from Year 8), plus the current year's school report; selection is competitive, with a waiting list when places run out. Registration requires the birth certificate and the CPF of the child and parents. Children with disabilities, autism or high abilities get special arrangements in the test on the basis of a medical report. The school does not require Spanish for admission. Families with an income of up to 1,5 minimum wages per person can receive a full bursary from the network, up to 3 minimum wages a partial one, through a separate application.
Stages and year groups Grades Maternal - 3.ª Série do Ensino Médio. Educação Infantil (Maternal, 1.º and 2.º Período), Ensino Fundamental (1.º-9.º Ano) and Ensino Médio (1.ª-3.ª Série) under the Brazilian curriculum. Under its agreement with the Spanish Ministry of Education the school also runs the Spanish curriculum: "o mesmo currículo escolar utilizado na Espanha, com proficiência na língua espanhola e as certificações ESO, equivalente ao Ensino Fundamental e Bachirellato, ao Ensino Médio" ("the same curriculum as in Spain, with proficiency in Spanish and the ESO and Bachillerato certificates"). Pupils receive both the Brazilian diploma and the Spanish ESO and Bachillerato (dual graduation).
Address Rua Prof. Costa Chiabi, 15, Bairro Cidade Nova, Belo Horizonte, MG, CEP 31170-250, Brasil
Accreditations and programmes verified against official registries
MEFPDSpain's state register of schools lists it in its "abroad" section as a school under an agreement with the ministry (Centro de Convenio en el Extranjero), code 60001391. The school runs the Brazilian curriculum and the Spanish one under an agreement with Spain, with the ESO and Bachillerato certificates.
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
MEFPDMinistry of Education, Vocational Training and Sports of Spain
A school of the Spanish education system abroad: run by the Spanish state, or a private Spanish school supervised by the ministry, or a school under an agreement with the ministry. The curriculum is Spanish, and leavers receive the Spanish certificate. Every such school is named in Spain's state register of schools, each with its own code.
What the badge means for this school. This is a Spanish school abroad, and that can be checked in Spain's state register. The entry is not a quality inspection: a school is on the register as part of the Spanish system, not as the outcome of an assessment. The curriculum and the certificate are Spanish. What other programmes the school offers, and what it charges, are on its own website. The entry stands in the organisation's public register - anyone can check it.
Register to check for yourself, and the full guide →Spanish programme
The state school programme of Spain, with the Spanish certificates: ESO at 16 and the Bachiller after the baccalaureate.
What this means for this school. The programme is set by the Spanish Ministry of Education, which also names the school in its state register of schools, in the "abroad" section. Leavers receive Spanish qualifications: the Graduado en ESO after secondary school and the título de Bachiller after the baccalaureate. They are used for entry to Spanish universities; in other countries they are matched to local ones.
National programme
The state school programme of the country the school stands in: it is set by that country's ministry of education, which also licenses the school and awards the leaving certificate. That certificate is used for entry to local universities, and abroad it is matched to the local one.
What this means for this school. This entry does not count towards the score, and that is deliberate. Every lawful school in a country works to the national programme, so on its own it tells one school apart from no other - unlike the French, German or Russian programmes, which are carried abroad and confirmed by the register of their organisation. We show it because a parent needs to know what programme their child is taught and what certificate the child will get. Counting it would lift the whole ranking at once and still tell nobody apart.
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
The school does not describe its premises on its website.
Teaching staff
The school publishes neither the number of its teachers nor their qualifications.
Safety and wellbeing from the school's official website
The school says nothing on its website about security, medical care or pupil support.
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%)72 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 data55 Accreditation and verifiability (10%)85 Teaching staff (10%) scored on disclosed data55 Facilities (10%) scored on disclosed data55 Clubs and activities (8%) scored on disclosed data78 Value for money (6%) scored at the median71 "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 7 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