St. Nicholas School Pinheiros vs St. Paul's School - Sao Paulo

	S St. Nicholas School Pinheiros Sao Paulo, Brazil	S St. Paul's School - Sao Paulo Sao Paulo, Brazil
Snapshot	Snapshot
Fees / year	Fees / year R$94,500 - 159,125	Fees / year R$104,592
Age range	Age range 1 - 18 years	Age range 3 - 18 years
Type	Type Co-educational	Type Co-educational
Curriculum	Curriculum IB (PYP), IB (MYP), IB (DP), Cambridge IGCSE	Curriculum British Curriculum, Cambridge IGCSE, IB (DP)
Pupils	Pupils 565	Pupils 1,088
Typical class size	Typical class size —	Typical class size 20
Instruction language	Instruction language English	Instruction language English, Portuguese
Opened	Opened 1980	Opened 1926
Bus service	Bus service No	Bus service No
Essentials	Essentials
Location	Location Pinheiros Campus is located at Praça Joaquim Roberto, 30, 05423-160 Pinheiros, São Paulo (SP), Brazil. The campus is in the Pinheiros area of São Paulo. It serves Early Years through Diploma Programme as part of St. Nicholas School's IB continuum.	Location Rua Juquia 166, J.Paulistano, Sao Paulo, SP 01440-903
Stages	Stages Tiny Tots Programme (18 months – 3 years), IB Primary Years Programme (3–11 years), IB Middle Years Programme (11–16 years), IB Diploma Programme (16–18 years).	Stages Early Years (Pre-Prep); Junior School (Pre-Prep & Prep); Senior School; Sixth Form
School type	School type IB World School offering the full IB continuum (PYP, MYP, Diploma).	School type British international school
Pupil nationality mix	Pupil nationality mix St Nicholas Pinheiros has students from 21 nationalities; staff members from 20 nationalities.	Pupil nationality mix Multicultural community with over 25 nationalities across year groups.
Additional learning support	Additional learning support —	Additional learning support —
Country affiliation	Country affiliation Brazil	Country affiliation British
Religious affiliation	Religious affiliation —	Religious affiliation —
School day structure	School day structure —	School day structure —
Bus service details	Bus service details Transportation is provided via Bus Children; contact (11) 3721-3912 / 3731-5930; contato@buschildren.com.br.	Bus service details —
Fees	Fees
Fee details	Fee details Application / Registration fee - Application / registration fee: BRL 9,380.00 (single, payable on enrolment). Tuition fees by year group (monthly and annual amounts) - Tiny Tots I / Tiny Tots II / Nursery (08:00–12:00): BRL 7,560.00 per month — BRL 90,720.00 per year (12 monthly instalments). - Nursery / Primary (Nursery up to Grade 5): BRL 10,320.00 per month — BRL 123,840.00 per year (12 monthly instalments). - Middle & Secondary (Grade 6 to Grade 12): BRL 12,730.00 per month — BRL 152,760.00 per year (12 monthly instalments). Other recurring academic fees - Resource & Technology fee: - Tiny Tots / Primary (Tiny Tots to Grade 5): two instalments of BRL 2,210.00 each — total BRL 4,420.00 per year. - Middle & Secondary (Grade 6 to Grade 12): two instalments of BRL 2,540.00 each — total BRL 5,080.00 per year. Re‑enrolment / re‑registration - Annual re‑enrolment fee: 50% of the current monthly tuition, charged each April as the re‑registration payment. Billing schedule and payment terms - The annual tuition is billed as 12 monthly instalments (the school's annual charge is the sum of 12 instalments plus the re‑enrolment fee). - Fiscal year and quarters: the school's financial year runs from 1 July to 30 June; fiscal quarters are Jul/Aug/Sep, Oct/Nov/Dec, Jan/Feb/Mar and Apr/May/Jun. - New entrants are responsible for the tuition for the month of entry and for any months prior in the current fiscal quarter. Students who leave before the end of the term remain subject to contractual penalties as set out in the school contract. - Discount for full annual payment: a discount is offered for paying the full annual tuition in advance (discount rate shown as 4% for the campus). Boarding fees - Boarding is not applicable; the Pinheiros campus operates as a day school (no boarding fees). Other costs and fees - Uniforms: wearing school uniform is required. Uniforms are supplied through the school's approved vendors (contacts and shop details provided by the school). Typical uniform purchases are a separate, one‑off family cost billed through the vendor at the time of purchase. - Transport: contracted school transport is available through the school's approved transport supplier; transport fees are separate and set by the transport provider. - Additional incidental costs: optional extracurricular activities, life‑skills trips, exam fees (IGCSE/IB where applicable) and some specialist materials may be charged separately. (Where a specific mandatory additional fee is listed above, it is already noted.) Refund and cancellation - Students who withdraw before the end of the contracted period are subject to contractual penalties; the school requires payment for the month of entry and may apply further contractual charges for early withdrawal. Refunds and cancellation conditions are administered according to the school's contract terms. Fee payment options and practical notes - Tuition is billed monthly (12 instalments) with the option to pay the full year in advance for the stated discount. Specific payment channels (for example, boleto bancário, bank transfer, credit card acceptance) are handled by the school's finance office and are not listed in the published fee summary; parents should follow the invoice/payment instructions provided by the school's admissions or finance office when completing enrolment. If you require these numbers formatted or integrated into your database fields exactly as listed above, they are ready to be copied as shown.	Fee details Application / Registration Fee - St. Paul's School reports a one‑off registration/placement fee in public reports. A widely cited figure for this fee is R$ 33,768 (one‑off). Tuition fees by year group (reported figures and annual equivalents) - Published public reports do not provide a full official 2026/27 fee schedule on the school's publicly accessible materials. The most recent widely reported fee figures available in the public domain are from press coverage (reported for 2023) and differ between sources; both sets of figures are given below so you have the reported monthly amounts and simple annual equivalents (monthly × 12) for parent budgeting purposes. - Reported (Forbes Brasil, reported as monthly amounts): - Early Years / Educação Infantil: R$ 8,716 per month — annual equivalent R$ 104,592. - Ensino Fundamental (Primary/Lower Secondary): R$ 8,716 per month — annual equivalent R$ 104,592. - Ensino Médio (Senior School / High School): R$ 11,012 per month — annual equivalent R$ 132,144. - Alternative reported figures (other national press reporting the same dataset): - Reported matrícula (registration) R$ 12,182 and mensalidade (monthly tuition) ~R$ 12,104 (reported as a monthly figure for Ensino Médio in some press summaries). Annual equivalent of R$ 12,104 per month would be R$ 145,248. Billing schedule and payment terms - The school's public Terms of Service and parent communications describe that detailed billing, payment schedules and payment information are handled through the school's parent communications channels and portals rather than published as a public fee schedule. The exact billing model (number of instalments per year, whether the school issues an annual invoice/‘anuidade' or monthly invoices, early‑payment discounts, or sibling discount rules in force for 2026/27) is not published in an accessible public fee schedule. Boarding fees - No current boarding programme or boarding fees are listed in the school's public profile. St. Paul's School is described in its school profile as a day school delivering Pre‑Prep through Sixth Form (K–12) on its Jardins campus; therefore boarding fees are not applicable. Other costs and compulsory extras - Publicly reported summaries of St. Paul's fees record the registration/placement fee and monthly tuition only; a published, itemised list of additional compulsory charges (uniform, books/materials, technology fees, school lunch, transport, extra‑curricular programme fees or school trips) for 2026/27 or 2025/26 was not available in the school's publicly accessible documents. Where other schools include separate material/technology charges in reporting, those appear as separate line items; St. Paul's public reporting in the sources consulted did not provide the same line‑by‑line breakdown for uniforms or materials. Refunds and cancellations - The school's public Terms of Service and policies indicate that detailed rules about registrations, payments and related administrative processes are managed through the school's parent channels and formal policies available to registered families. A public, itemised refund or cancellation policy for fee payments (effective for 2026/27) was not published in the publicly accessible documents reviewed. Refund and withdrawal terms are handled in the school's formal documentation for parents. Fee payment options - The public Terms of Service explains that information about payments is provided to parents via the school's parent communications app and admissions office; specific payment methods (for example, bank transfer, boleto, credit card authorisation, direct debit) are not published as a public list. Parents are normally required to use the school's payment channels described in admissions/parent communications. Summary note on the figures above - The figures presented above are taken from the most recent widely circulated public reporting available in the sources consulted; public reports show differing figures in different outlets. The school's public materials (school profile and Terms of Service) describe admissions, communications and where parents receive invoicing information but do not publish a detailed 2026/27 fee schedule on the publicly accessible site. For accurate, binding billing information for a particular application year and for exact instalment schedules, documented refunds, compulsory extras (uniforms, transport, meals), and accepted payment methods, the school issues the formal fee schedule and terms to applicants/registered families through its admissions and parent communication channels.
Diving deeper	Diving deeper
Boarding arrangements	Boarding arrangements —	Boarding arrangements —
Uniform requirement	Uniform requirement —	Uniform requirement —
Food options	Food options —	Food options —
House system	House system —	House system —
Governance and ownership	Governance and ownership —	Governance and ownership —
Academics	Academics
Curriculum details	Curriculum details The Pinheiros Campus offers a tiered IB-based curriculum: Tiny Tots (18 months–3 years) with play-based inquiry; Primary Years Programme (PYP) for ages 3–11; Middle Years Programme (MYP) for ages 11–16, featuring the 4 Peaks core (Passion, Project, Peer, Play) and a homegrown curriculum, leading to Cambridge IGCSE. The Diploma Programme (DP) for ages 16–18 comprises six subject groups and a DP core (TOK, CAS, Extended Essay). Languages taught include English, French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese and Spanish.	Curriculum details The curriculum is aligned with the English National Curriculum, incorporating the UK National Curriculum, Cambridge IGCSEs and the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme, while also meeting the Brazilian Core Curriculum. It provides a British bilingual and bicultural education across Escola Infantil, Ensino Fundamental and Ensino Médio, with qualified local teachers registered with MEC. Junior School, Senior School and Sixth Form structure the programme. The school offers enrichment opportunities in arts, culture and sport, as well as field trips to broaden learning beyond the classroom. The curriculum also emphasizes developing pupils sense of identity, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural aspects of a diverse society.
Student teacher ratio	Student teacher ratio —	Student teacher ratio —
Exam results	Exam results The Diploma Programme pass rate is typically over 90%, with some students achieving 40+ points and the school average around 32–33 points. Over 45 learners from Pinheiros sit the Diploma each year. Over 90% of learners at Pinheiros achieve the IB bilingual Diploma.	Exam results IB Diploma Programme: 2023-2024 cohort achieved a 100% pass rate with 75 diploma recipients; average points score was 35.4, higher than the global average of 30.32, with about 22% of grades at 7 and 18 pupils scoring 40 or more. Cambridge IGCSEs: for the year, over half the grades were A-A, with 9 students achieving all A and A grades and 75% of grades in the A*-B range. Recent news items include the Class of 2025 IB results announced in August 2025.
Higher education progression	Higher education progression The school provides a robust University Counseling program to guide students to higher education, with graduates studying at universities in more than a dozen countries. The Diploma Programme is widely recognised by leading universities worldwide.	Higher education progression St. Paul graduates enroll in three- to four-year degree programs at colleges and universities worldwide. In the United Kingdom, destinations include Cambridge, Durham, LSE, UCL, Kings College London and Warwick. In the United States and Canada, destinations include Harvard, Yale, Cornell, Penn, Columbia and NYU. In Continental Europe and elsewhere, destinations include IE University (Spain), University of Amsterdam and University of Toronto; in Brazil, Insper, Fundação Getúlio Vargas and Mackenzie.
Gifted and talented	Gifted and talented —	Gifted and talented The enrichment program offers a wide range of clubs and societies, trips and activities in sport, music and the arts. Notable programs for high-achieving pupils include Model United Nations and the Duke of Edinburghs International Award.
Academic calendar	Academic calendar —	Academic calendar —
Wellbeing & support	Wellbeing & support
Social & emotional learning	Social & emotional learning —	Social & emotional learning —
Special educational needs (SEN)	Special educational needs (SEN) —	Special educational needs (SEN) —
English as an additional language	English as an additional language —	English as an additional language —
Mental wellbeing	Mental wellbeing —	Mental wellbeing —
Safeguarding	Safeguarding —	Safeguarding —
Safeguarding policy	Safeguarding policy —	Safeguarding policy —
Facilities	Facilities
Facilities overview	Facilities overview —	Facilities overview —
Sports facilities	Sports facilities —	Sports facilities —
Academic facilities	Academic facilities —	Academic facilities —
Extra curricular facilities	Extra curricular facilities —	Extra curricular facilities —
Parent experience	Parent experience
History	History —	History —
Community	Community —	Community —
Parent teacher association	Parent teacher association —	Parent teacher association —
Extra-curricular	Extra-curricular
Academic & intellectual	Academic & intellectual —	Academic & intellectual —
Arts & creative	Arts & creative —	Arts & creative —
Cultural & language	Cultural & language —	Cultural & language —
Social & hobbies	Social & hobbies —	Social & hobbies —
Community & service	Community & service —	Community & service —
Leadership & professional	Leadership & professional —	Leadership & professional —
Lifestyle & wellbeing	Lifestyle & wellbeing —	Lifestyle & wellbeing —
Language provision	Language provision
Language provision	Language provision —	Language provision —
Bilingual teaching	Bilingual teaching —	Bilingual teaching —
Immersion programs	Immersion programs —	Immersion programs —
Reputation	Reputation
Awards	Awards —	Awards —
Accreditations	Accreditations —	Accreditations —
Admissions	Admissions
Admissions	Admissions 1. Documentation submission and initial visit. The admissions procedure begins with documentation submitted to the admissions department. After submitting the documents, an appointment for the applicant and family to visit the school, either face-to-face or online, is arranged to present the school's philosophy, mission and pedagogy. The family will meet with the Admissions team during this visit to discuss the admissions process and requirements. 2. Visits with pedagogical teams and specialists. An appointment is scheduled with the relevant pedagogical department to discuss the applicant's learning journey. Depending on age and profile, the applicant may also meet with personalised learning support specialists, university advisors or language specialists. Interviews may be conducted in the applicant's home language where applicable (Japanese and Korean when appropriate). 3. Age-group specific admissions requirements. Early Years (Tiny Tots through Kindergarten 2) require the EY application form, a school report from the last year, and an interview with the EY Pedagogical Team (scheduled by Admissions). Primary (Grade 1 to Grade 5) require the Primary application form, school references from the current teacher and the parents, and school reports for the last three years, plus an interview with the Primary Pedagogical Team. Secondary (Grade 6 to Year 12) require an application form, a self-assessment by the applicant, a written parental application, a school reference, and school reports for the last three years; Admissions and Pedagogical teams meet to discuss each applicant based on documentation, visits, interviews, and spaces available. 4. Decision and placement. The Admissions and Pedagogical teams meet to discuss each applicant based on documentation, visits, interviews, and spaces available. The Admissions Department informs the family of the outcome; on acceptance, the relevant information is transferred to SchoolBase and the biography is completed. If the application is rejected, the final decision rests with the head of the section. 5. Enrollment and onboarding. Enrollment guides families through the enrollment process including the relevant documentation for registration with the Brazilian authorities. Documentation includes birth certificate, RG/ID and passport details with a photo; medical health certificate and eyesight/hearing tests from age 4; vaccinations and proof of address. For children coming from Brazilian schools, Histórico Escolar, Carta de Transferência and Declaração de Adimplência are required; for children from international schools, a copy of transcripts/reports for the last three years translated into Portuguese, English, or Spanish is required. Onboarding includes New Family orientation day and sharing of information (Handbooks, PTA information, House Form, Seesaw, IsCool App & School Portal); if enrolling mid-term, the admissions department will share relevant information prior to start. A follow-up meeting with the family is planned within the first month.	Admissions PP1 entry (3 years old). Stage 1: Enquire. Read about St. Paul's values and policies. Stage 2: Visit St. Paul's — Open Mornings for Pre-Prep 1 Admissions. Open Mornings are held several times each term and include a guided school tour led by Student Admissions Ambassadors and a leadership presentation to give insight into daily life and the educational approach. Open mornings are for parents; international families can request a personalised session, subject to availability. Do not book visits more than a few months in advance. Stage 3: Application. After an Open Morning, families receive detailed instructions to begin the application. Complete the form and pay a non-refundable application fee of R$800; payment does not guarantee a place. Stage 4: Informative meeting with Admissions team. All Pre-Prep 1 applicants are invited to a meeting with the Admissions Team to learn about life in the Pre-Prep, daily routines, curriculum, and educational approach; parents may ask questions; children do not attend. Stage 5: Stay & Play session. The Stay & Play session is held on different days in February and March of the year of entry and observes children in a group classroom setting in an English-speaking environment; no preparation is needed and detailed information is provided in advance. Outcomes. After all stages, the school notifies families of the outcome. Applications are frequently oversubscribed; if a place is offered, families receive a list of enrolment documents and detailed information about fees.
Scholarships	Scholarships The school does not provide bursaries or scholarships.	Scholarships St. Paul's Scholarship Programme includes the St. Paul's Endowment, established to expand financial assistance and advance towards a target of 10% of Senior School pupils receiving financial aid. The Endowment supports the St. Paul's Foundation Scholarship Programme, which offers fully funded places for talented Brazilian children whose families cannot cover the costs of an international education. The Bursary Fund provides partial fee assistance for British families, funded by FABEC. Eligibility requires the child and one parent to hold UK passports and the British parent to have lived in the UK for at least 10 years; assistance is means-tested, up to 40% of tuition, not time-limited but reviewed, and involves submission of school reports and financial documents. The application process includes an assessment day, submission of income documents, and a decision by a Bursary Subcommittee.
Waitlist	Waitlist —	Waitlist If there are no places available for the year group, families are asked whether they would like to be placed on our contact list for future vacancies.
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