Switzerland · Zurich
ZIS is a day school on two campuses. The 2026/27 fee table is on de.zis.ch. Whether a company partnership puts you first in the queue is a question for enrolment, not for a blog.
Questo ritratto è ancora in inglese. Le altre lingue arrivano scuola per scuola.
Curricolo come lo pubblica la scuola:International and English/German bilingual pathway in the younger years · IB Diploma or ZIS Diploma with AP in Grades 11–12 · NEASC-accredited ZIS High School Diploma
Lingue di istruzione:English, German (bilingual pathway)
Zurich International School is a not-for-profit day school for ages 3 to 18. The current School Director on the welcome page is Elsa Hernández-Donohue. Confirm that on the live page; leadership moves.
The welcome page prints 1,300+ students: about 400 in Early Childhood to Grade 5 at Wädenswil, about 340 in Grades 6–8 and about 540 in Grades 9–12 at Adliswil. The Adliswil campus page adds those last two bands as approximately 880. More than 60 nationalities. Treat those as the school’s own snapshot.
There is no boarding house. If the posting has not found a flat between the lake and the Sihl, that is not ZIS’s problem. There is a school bus (door-to-door within about 500 metres of home, plus a Lower School “Village Liner” on a set route from Rüschlikon) and public transport into Adliswil, including a shuttle from Thalwil station. Bus and lunch are extra.
The useful questions are not “is it the international school in Zurich.” The useful questions are: International pathway or bilingual? Can this child work in academic English by Grade 7 — and in German if you want the bilingual road? Can you live with the priority order if a company partner is ahead of you? And can you pay the one-time infrastructure fee as well as the tuition?
ZIS says it welcomes applications from all students and wants families who will help build “a culture of challenge and inclusion.” It is still a school with more applications than chairs in some years. When that happens, the live admissions page publishes a priority order:
A September 2016 admissions-policy PDF is still hosted and says much the same. The 2026 process page repeats the four steps in current HTML. Do not assume a UN or embassy letter puts you in bucket one unless ZIS has signed a company agreement.
It is a day school with two academic personalities in the younger years.
The International Pathway teaches in English, with German language tuition included in the fees. From the middle of Grade 7, new arrivals must show enough English, though EAL support exists. In Grades 11 and 12, applicants must show strong English. There is no soft landing in the Diploma or AP years for a child who cannot write a history essay in English.
The Bilingual Pathway (English and German as joint languages of instruction) is currently for children aged 3 to 11, and the school says it is expanding toward Grade 9. The bilingual admissions page is stricter about language history: Preschool to Kindergarten children should have one strong home language; from Grade 1 there is an internal assessment of spoken and written German and/or English. The earlier and longer a child stays on that path, they say, the more likely academic success in both languages. A verbal language assessment is part of the bilingual meeting. This is not “a bit of German club after lunch.”
Children can start Preschool from the first Monday of the month after the third birthday. They need to be ready for a school day; the bilingual page and the older policy PDF both talk about toilet training as a practical line. Students 19 and over are not a normal admit in that 2016 PDF — ask whether that sentence still governs.
ZIS is not a specialist SEN school, but it invests in the sentence. The support page describes a multi-disciplinary team — learning-support teachers, EAL, counsellors, occupational and speech therapists, nurses — and a Bespoke Learning Support programme for a more intensive, extra-fee path. Diagnostic reports must be in English, full, and no older than three years, plus a current IEP. Older reports mean a re-evaluation before they will consider the file. They reserve the right to offer a conditional place. Full transparency is the deal. If you hide a diagnosis, you are gambling with the first term.
Wädenswil — Steinacherstrasse 140, 8820 Wädenswil — is Early Childhood to Grade 5: play-based early years, both pathways, playgrounds, clubs, buses. About 400 children.
Adliswil is Grades 6–12. The campus page names Maggie Wollner as principal — confirm the live page. A facility opened in August 2022: media centre, Design Lab, theatre, music. About 880 students. Hot food for sale; packed lunches allowed.
School day at Adliswil, from the campus page:
Ask Wädenswil for the Lower School bell times on the tour; the pages we used print the Adliswil clock more clearly.
None of that tells you if your child will have a friend in week two. Ask to see Grade 4 and Grade 9 on an ordinary Wednesday — the late start changes the feel of the morning — not only the theatre.
Think in three bands, then in two leaving routes.
Early Childhood to Grade 5 (Wädenswil). Two pathways: International (academic English, plus German as a taught language) and Bilingual (academic English and German). Guided inquiry, collaboration, core subjects plus “single subjects,” German, and home learning are the menu headings on the Lower School curriculum page. Technology is part of the offer: iPads or notebooks up to Grade 8 sit inside the published fee inclusions; the bilingual page mentions moving to 1-to-1 iPad in Grade 1.
Grades 6–8 (Adliswil). Inquiry-based middle school, wide subject choice, German instruction, a provided laptop, EAL and learning support for mild to moderate needs. The welcome page’s middle-school band is about 340 children.
Grades 9–12. Grade 9–10 courses are written to “international benchmarks.” In Grades 11–12 a student chooses among:
Those can be combined into a ZIS pathway that is not a full IB Diploma. The Adliswil page is explicit: the details are up to you, with university counselling attached. More than 60 co-curricular activities are claimed — academics, service, STEM, arts, athletics. Grade 11 includes CV and interview training and a chance to apply for a summer internship with employer partners in Switzerland.
98% of graduates, the campus page says, go on to university in Switzerland or abroad. That is the school talking about itself. We are not treating it as your child’s offer letter.
International Pathway: English in the classroom; German included in tuition. From mid-Grade 7, new joiners must show English; EAL is still listed in the fee inclusions. Grades 11–12 need strong English. Spanish appears as a DELE option — confirm whether that is an extra, not a second bilingual path.
Bilingual Pathway: English and German as joint media of instruction, ages 3–11 now, heading toward Grade 9. A child with one strong home language is the file they describe; two weak school languages is harder. Ask whether the bilingual class still exists in the year you need — the expansion is future tense.
Applications run through the year. Spaces can be limited; they say apply as soon as you can. Three steps on the live page.
Step 1 — Application form and fee. Create an account (reuse an inquiry login). Pay CHF 500 per child plus credit-card fees. Non-refundable. Does not guarantee a place. Returning families re-open a file through Enrolment rather than starting from zero.
Step 2 — Documents. Everyone: a general teacher recommendation and the photo page of the child’s passport. Early Childhood and Grades 1–8: the most recent report (Preschool and Kindergarten only if it exists); an English teacher recommendation for Grades 6–8. Grades 9–12: reports for the last two years, plus English and Mathematics teacher recommendations. All documents in English, or with an English translation. If there is a diagnosis, therapy, or extra support: full reports within three years and a current IEP, in English, to the Director of Inclusion and Challenge.
Step 3 — Review. An Academic Review Team reads the file. Support-services reviews take longer. They try to reply within ten working days of a complete file. A face-to-face meeting is not usual; they may ask for one, in person or online. If a seat exists, Enrolment offers it. A Confirmation of Acceptance follows payment of the full, non-refundable infrastructure contribution. If there is no seat, the child goes into a waiting pool — their word, not “waitlist position 14.” After acceptance they may still set subject tests for placement.
Age cut-offs on the live admissions page (Lower School, age by 31 August except Preschool 1):
| Grade | Age rule |
|---|---|
| Preschool 1 | First Monday of the month after the 3rd birthday |
| Preschool 2 | Age 3 by 31 August |
| Kindergarten 1 & 2 | Age 4 by 31 August |
| Grade 1 | Age 6 by 31 August |
| Grade 2 | Age 7 by 31 August |
| Grade 3 | Age 8 by 31 August |
| Grade 4 | Age 9 by 31 August |
| Grade 5 | Age 10 by 31 August |
| Grades 6–12 | Age and academic performance |
Grades 9 and 10 also require enough mathematics to pass an Algebra 1 course. That is a published bar, not a rumour.
Bilingual applications add a family meeting and a verbal language assessment, in person at Lower School when they can.
Open Houses run through the year. Use them. A two-campus school can look finished from the lake and still be the wrong Wednesday for a quiet seven-year-old.
The German fees page currently carries the full grid. The English fees page describes what is included and the one-off charges; the bilingual fees page repeats the Kindergarten-and-up tariffs. These are the school’s numbers, in Swiss francs. They will move. Confirm the live pages before you budget. Full family obligations sit in the Financial Regulations linked from those pages.
One-time costs
| Fee | 2026/27 |
|---|---|
| Application (non-refundable; also covers Preschool registration; plus card fees) | CHF 500 |
| Re-application (one admissions cycle; plus card fees) | CHF 500 |
| Infrastructure contribution, from Kindergarten onward (one-off, non-refundable; due to confirm a place) | CHF 5,000 |
Annual tuition, International / standard published grid
| Year group | Pattern | CHF |
|---|---|---|
| Preschool PS0 | Mornings | 16,900 |
| Preschool PS1 | Mornings + 1 afternoon | 19,100 |
| Preschool PS2 | Mornings + 2 afternoons | 21,200 |
| Preschool PS3 | Mornings + 3 afternoons | 23,200 |
| Preschool PS4 | Mornings + 4 afternoons | 25,000 |
| Preschool PS5 | Full days | 26,900 |
| Kindergarten 1 & 2 | Full days | 27,750 |
| Grades 1–5 | Full days | 32,800 |
| Grades 6–8 | Full days | 36,450 |
| Grades 9–10 | Full days | 39,300 |
| Grades 11–12 | Full days | 39,700 |
The bilingual fees page prints the same Kindergarten-to-Grade-12 numbers.
Bespoke / Individualized Learning Support (separate tariff on the German fees page)
| Grades | CHF |
|---|---|
| 1–5 | 65,600 |
| 6–8 | 72,900 |
| 9–12 (13) | 78,600 |
Ask Enrolment which programme name on your offer letter matches which line. The public support page also says “an additional fee applies” for the intensive path without repeating every franc.
What the annual fee includes, from the fees pages: a broad co-curricular programme; curricular trips and activities; German language tuition; iPads or PC notebooks to Grade 8; student and learning-support services except occupational therapy and speech-and-language therapy; EAL. The bilingual page also lists learning materials and books, campus facilities, and a choice of two activities from the sport and activities programme.
What it does not: AP and IB exam fees; lunch; transport; after-school care (the bilingual page offers care 07:00–18:00 with breakfast or snacks); vacation and weekend programmes; private music; speech and language therapy in English on campus; OT.
We are not adding a bus price because the pages describe routes rather than a single published franc figure for 2026/27. Ask for the current transport sheet.
A first-year Grade 6, paid by a family who is not on a partnership discount we were not shown, is not “about CHF 36,000.” It is application + infrastructure (if Kindergarten or above and not already paid) + tuition — CHF 41,950 — before lunch, bus, exams, or bespoke support. If a company pays, get the priority and the invoice route in writing. The parent is still the person who has to understand the Financial Regulations.
Three pieces of paper get mashed together.
The IB Diploma — including a bilingual diploma option — is the portable one: six subjects, higher and standard, plus the IB core. Exam fees are extra. We are not printing a ZIS average as your child’s forecast.
Advanced Placement courses can sit beside or instead of a full IB. Exam fees are extra. Some US admissions offices read AP well; some national European doors still want a full IB or a national diploma. Ask Future Pathways with a country list, not a vibe.
The ZIS High School Diploma is the school’s own NEASC-accredited leaving certificate. The older school-profile language on the site has talked about a credit minimum in Grades 9–12; confirm the live credit rule with counselling, because we are not going to recycle a figure from a year we cannot see on a current HTML page. Students can mix IB courses, AP and ZIS courses under this diploma. Many children who complete a full IB will also satisfy a school diploma, because the courses overlap. A diploma-only path with more flexibility is a counselling conversation.
98% to university is a campus sentence, not a promise. Advisors also say they will work with a student who is not going to university.
If a child would find the full Diploma too heavy, ask in Grade 10 — not in September of Grade 12 — how an AP / ZIS-course mix would look for the countries you might actually apply to.
Ask where a January arrival sits at lunch in week one, on this campus. Ask how German is grouped on the International Pathway, and whether the Bilingual Pathway still has a chair in the year you need. Ask how many Grade 11s are on the full IB versus AP-and-ZIS-diploma. Ask whether your employer is a company partner in ZIS’s sense, not in yours. Ask what Algebra 1 means for a Grade 9 applicant from a different maths sequence. Ask what happens if the posting ends in March (get the Financial Regulations withdrawal rule in writing). Ask whether EAL or bespoke support would apply, and what that costs. Ask to see Grade 5 in Wädenswil and Grade 9 in Adliswil, not only the Design Lab.
If you might stay in Switzerland, ask how far the bilingual path now runs, and what a move into a cantonal school later would actually require. ZIS is not a Swiss public Gymnasium.
We are not saying ZIS is the best school in Zurich. We are not guessing a waiting-pool length. We are not inventing a 2027/28 fee or a bus price. We are not treating Good Schools Guide quotations on the campus pages as our review. The site points to IB and NEASC as reference points; confirm the live accreditation story, because those cycles move. The 2016 policy PDF is still on the server; the 2026 process page is the one we used for priority, age cut-offs and documents.
Read the current German fee grid and the admissions process, and write to enrolment before you resign a flat on the other side of the lake. This is a map. The school still has to be the right Wednesday. ISZL is a different Tuesday — Baar and Hünenberg, not this lakeside.
Pagine e documenti ufficiali che abbiamo letto. Se un numero conta per il bilancio o la domanda, aprite il link e controllate che sia ancora valido.
Orientamento amichevole, non una domanda. Date, rette e programmi si muovono. Confermate tutto con la scuola.
Zurich is not one international campus. ZIS sits on the lake shore south of the city. ICS sits in Zumikon. Same canton. Almost no Monday. Time both roads.
15 minLe lettere sul diploma contano. Non sono tutto il ragazzo. Ecco come distinguerle senza mal di testa, e senza fingere che ogni porta resti aperta.
16 minNon vi serve un algoritmo perfetto. Vi servono poche cose vere su vostro figlio, una lista un po’ noiosa sul frigo, e il coraggio di ignorare un bel campus che non vi sta.
15 minLa retta è il numero in homepage. Il PDF è quello che arriva a marzo. Ecco come leggere il secondo, senza inventare un euro, una corona o una scadenza.