Eleven schools where Harland works with families most often. Editorial coverage of each one, a side-by-side comparison of the basics, and an editorial guide for parents weighing the decision.
International schools in Taipei are often compared on rankings, exam averages, and tuition figures. Our view is that the real question is not which school ranks highest, but which school's academic culture, admissions process, and community fit a specific child and family.
Each school in this guide is one we have helped families navigate. We support students preparing for entrance assessments, students transferring between schools, students bridging back to school after time away, and students managing the curriculum demands once they are inside. The notes below reflect what we observe in the families we work with at each school, alongside publicly available information about each institution.
Our Taipei guide covers eleven schools where Harland has substantial direct experience with families. New schools are added as our experience with each one becomes substantive enough to support honest coverage.
Founded 1949 as an AIT contract school for the children of American officials and personnel in Taiwan. American educational model from KA through Grade 12, with AP and the IB Diploma running in parallel at the high school level. Among the longest-established US-curriculum schools in Asia, with consistently strong AP and standardised test results.
Read the TAS guideUnified in 2003 from three national schools, TES carries British, French, and German national sections through to Year 9, with a unified high school offering the IB Diploma and IB Career-related Programme at post-16. The multi-section structure makes TES distinctive in Asia for families wanting continuity in a continental European curriculum.
Read the TES guideKCIS Xiugang offers three qualification pathways from Grade 10: the IB Diploma, AP Capstone with US-style high school diploma, and the Taiwanese senior high school diploma. Few schools in Asia manage three parallel pathways at this scale. Strong recent IB Diploma cohort results and a growing AP programme.
Read the KCIS guideThe Bilingual Department of Taipei Fuhsing Private School, founded 2007. A US AP track delivered within a Taiwanese private school, with English instruction across core subjects and a smaller, more academically intensive cohort than full-international schools. Distinctive for families seeking strong English-medium academics alongside Taiwanese cultural and language continuity.
Read the Fuhsing guideFounded 1957 by the Dominican Sisters. American curriculum from Kindergarten through Grade 12, with Advanced Placement at the high school level. Among the smaller schools in this guide, with a community-scale environment distinctive in Taipei's international school landscape. Catholic in identity, open in enrolment.
Read the DIS guideAn IB Continuum World School in Beitou, authorised across all three IB programmes between 2015 and 2016. A bilingual school serving a community that is roughly three quarters Taiwan nationals from PreK through Grade 12, with no foreign-passport requirement. Distinctive for delivering the full IB continuum within a bilingual, Taiwan-rooted setting.
Read the Kuei Shan guideThe Taipei campus of the long-established Morrison Academy system, an American Christian school accredited by WASC and ACSI. A US curriculum with Advanced Placement on a Linkou campus, with Bible classes and weekly chapel as part of enrolment. Distinctive for pairing an established American Christian programme with a New Taipei location.
Read the Morrison guideA small Seventh-day Adventist school on an eight-acre wooded campus on Yangmingshan, serving Kindergarten through Grade 8. Foreign-registered since 1991, with a community of mostly American, Canadian, Japanese, and Filipino families. Distinctive as a small, values-anchored elementary and middle school, with families planning the Grade 8 transition to a high school elsewhere.
Read the TAAS guideAn experimental education institution founded in 2019, with project-based learning and an Ontario (Canadian) framework on transcripts alongside 16 AP courses. Two diploma routes, a Taipei experimental diploma or the OSSD, for students in Grades 5 through 12, with no foreign-passport requirement. Distinctive for an NTU-embedded senior high and a project-based model.
Read the VIS guideLicensed in 2014 as New Taipei's first American-curriculum school and opened in 2016, AAIA offers a US curriculum with AP for Grades 6 through 12, with no elementary division. A Linkou campus near the Airport MRT, operating a published admissions priority ladder and currently waitlisted across grades. Distinctive as a US-priority middle and high school in the Linkou catchment.
Read the AAIA guideA small American Christian school in Nangang, founded 1999, serving Grades 1 through 12 at roughly five students per teacher. A US college-preparatory curriculum with four AP sciences, daily Bible classes, and a foreign-passport requirement. Distinctive for the smallest American classroom in the city and a science-weighted advanced track.
Read the GCA guideA scan-level comparison across founded date, curriculum, grades, location, and the one feature each school is most distinctive for. Each school's full guide carries the deeper picture.
| School | Founded | Curriculum | Grades | Location | Distinctive for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TAS | 1949 | US, AP, IB DP | KA to Grade 12 | Tianmu, Shilin | AP and IB Diploma in parallel from Grade 11 |
| TES | 2003, unified | UK, French, German, IB DP and CP | Nursery to Year 13 | Yangmingshan, Shilin | British, French, German national sections under one school |
| KCIS | 2004 (JH) | IB, AP, Taiwanese | Grades 7 to 12 | Xindian, New Taipei | Three qualification pathways from Grade 10 |
| Fuhsing BD | 2007 (BD) | US AP, bilingual | K to Grade 12 | Da-an, Taipei | US AP track inside a Taiwanese private school |
| DIS | 1957 | US, AP | K to Grade 12 | Tianmu, Shilin | Smaller community scale, Dominican-founded |
| Kuei Shan | 1963 | IB, bilingual | PreK to Grade 12 | Beitou | Full IB continuum in a bilingual, Taiwan-rooted school |
| Morrison | 1961, as Bethany | American with AP | K to Grade 12 | Linkou, New Taipei | Established American Christian programme in Linkou |
| TAAS | 1955 | American | K to Grade 8 | Yangmingshan, Shilin | Small Adventist school; families plan a Grade 8 move |
| VIS | 2019 | Ontario, project-based | Grades 5 to 12 | Zhongzheng (senior high) | NTU-embedded, project-based, Ontario plus AP |
| AAIA | 2016 (opened) | American with AP | Grades 6 to 12 | Linkou, New Taipei | US-priority middle and high in Linkou |
| GCA | 1999 | American, AP sciences | Grades 1 to 12 | Nangang | Smallest American classroom in the city; science-weighted |
Harland works with families at each of the eleven schools above. We prepare students for entrance assessments and interviews. We support them through the grade transitions that matter most. We see the difference between how each school presents itself and how each school actually behaves day to day.
Our guides reflect what we have observed in the families we have helped navigate each one. Where a claim is based on Harland's direct experience with families at the school, we say so. Where it is drawn from publicly available information, we attribute it to the source. What we do not have direct experience with, we leave out.
Our Student Coordinator speaks with Taipei families about school fit regularly, including schools beyond those we cover in this guide. A short conversation can help narrow the decision before you visit.
We cover schools where Harland has helped families navigate the application, transition, or curriculum demands. Taipei coverage stands at eleven schools. New schools are added as our experience with each one becomes substantive enough to write about honestly. Schools we are not yet ready to cover are not included.
Published May 2026, expanded June 2026, by Harland Academic Leadership. Each individual school guide carries its own update date. We refresh this Taipei index when coverage expands or when school-level facts change materially.