need to pay a fee of $68000 to get into a primary school in Changchun?

[cheese]

I heard from a friend who is sending his kid to study in a primary school in Changchun that they need to pay a fee of RMB68000 ( "understanding fee" which means - pay us extra to get into my school)

 

Now, my friend would really like to understand this better - can anyone here help?

[Richard Roman]

well - if the child looks anything like your photo cheese then I would charge a lot more! LOL!

[Chris Knight]

That's what I thought. This sort of thing happens all over China. Unfortunately, it's because everyone mistakenly thinks that all foreigners are rich, so they can overcharge and think that we don't know what's going on.

[cheese]

the child is not chinese. Happy to know what is happening around

[Richard ridealgh]

SAD BUT TRUE!

[Chris Knight]

There are a growing number of expats who are getting fed up with these exorbitant fees and they are starting to home school their children. This might be an avenue your friend may want to check out. As Jason said, shop around.

[Jason]

RULE NUMBER ONE: if it's wrong in your own country... then it's also wrong in China. Please don't get duped into believing exuberant prices are equivalent to exceptional quality. Educationally, you WILL NOT get what you pay for. On top of this... the parent will need to absorb the cost and time to send the child to multiple academies that offer skills and abilities that the state-run institutions do not... 68,000RMB is only the beginning of a long journey to draining your bank account for a "convenient" education.

If you are going to pay that much for your child's education, while living in a Communist country, you are better off going home and paying local taxes because it will be cheaper, and more desirable, in the long-run.

For that price, you can find private institutions that are Internationally licensed and/or provide tax-free home-schooling accreditation.

The $10,000 is only the entrance fee. It will cost another 10,000+RMB (minimally) per term (minus transportation fees, uniforms, book fees, pens and paper, quality food and/or placement fees) for the student to attend. This does not guarantee proper placement on "our" scales, but placement (including linguistics) on Chinese standards.

A Chinese primary school only prepares students for Chinese secondary schools/Chinese high schools/Chinese higher educational institutions; unless you are committed to living in the People's Republic of China throughout your child's next 18 years... you are better off finding something that suits your own standards and conditions; unless you believe that temporary means are the best means.

I am not trying to deter anyone from having their children attend Chinese public schools... but the success rates of foreign students in any country are astronomically low and China, per capita, is not an exception.

[Chris Knight]

I agree with Richard. Don't pay it. Unfortunately, even if you tell the Education Bureau about it, they will tell you, "That's the cost of doing business", and not do anything about it. If there's a foreigner involved who complains to them, they'll either tell him to stop interfering in the internal affairs of China, or, "What does it matter to you? You're rich. You can afford it."

 

Been there, done that, got the t-shirt. 

[Richard ridealgh]

If that's NENU, my wife(who's Chinese) calls it something else - "guanxi" And it's because they can!! Don't pay it and they fill that void within the day. I know a family who will move to Australia because they are tired of having to pay these fees, because it doesn't stop there. Once inside, you have to pay each teacher annually or they will just disregard your children. The family told me that when their daughter entered that school 2 years ago it cost them 60000RMB, but since that time they have spent another 125000RMB on "please teach my kid something" fees!!!

[Richard Roman]

Are there any Chinese friends out there who can help Cheese with this enquiry?

[Chris Knight]

Is the child Chinese?