Frequently Asked Questions

NIST is located in the very heart of the bustling, vibrant city of Bangkok, and we are so lucky to be in this location. We are located close to major public transport stations linking us to the BTS and MRT systems, we are close to major shopping centres, beautiful parks, hospitals, restaurants, cafés, night spots, and much more.

This location, as much as we do love it, does come with some considerations. In particular, the traffic in the surrounding area can be heavy, and we therefore encourage our community members to use public transport as much as they can. We offer free shuttle buses to/from our school that link easily with the BTS and MRT systems.

When you join NIST, you immediately join a community of expatriates and locals who are willing to help answer any questions you may have. Our parent and teacher association (NIPTA) has representatives who will welcome parents and caregivers, and invite you to orientation excursions, welcome coffee mornings and social events. Your family will also join a cultural group, and representative will be in touch to invite you to join activities or events organised for those who share your cultural or linguistic background.

Our NIST Parent Facebook page is also an excellent resource for new parents, with many parents asking “where do I find” or “does anyone know” questions. Parents also advertise items for sale on Marketing Monday, and this can be very helpful for new parents needing to set up home in Bangkok.

New students will also be made to feel very welcome within our campus community. Orientation days and tours are arranged for all students, regardless if they join at the beginning or the middle of the school year.

Many NIST families live within walking distance to our school campus, or are close to a BTS or MRT station. Families are also able to drop child/ren directly to campus, however please be aware that during peak times, traffic can be slow.

NIST is located close to a major public transport station, Asoke BTS/Sukhumvit MRT, and from here NIST provides a free shuttle service to/from campus. The free shuttle operates regularly throughout the school day, and also on special event or sports days.

For students and families who do not wish to use the public transport system, or our free shuttle service, NIST contracts a private bus company, Montri Transport, for transportation services to/from campus. You will learn more about the range of transport options available when you join our community.

We welcome students from all over the world who share our values based on diversity and belonging, and who can contribute meaningfully to our community. NIST was founded primarily to meet the needs of internationally-minded expatriate families living temporarily in Bangkok, who were looking for world-class education for their children. Since our school first opened in 1992 we have welcomed thousands of students from all corners of the globe.

We also welcome Thai and other long-term, Bangkok-based residents who are committed to the mission of the school, to inspire growth, empower excellence, and to enrich the lives of all members of our community. Currently our school population is made up of 25% Thai nationals, and the remaining 75% of students are from families representing over 90 nationalities.

You can learn more about our community by exploring this website, and visiting our Community page, where we introduce you to our active parent-teacher association and cultural groups, our extensive alumni network, our generous giving community, and our professional and dedicated staff.

NIST has a well-resourced English as an Additional Language (EAL) department, and in the elementary school we are able to accept beginner English language learners. Because of the curricular demands in the secondary school, we are only able to support intermediate and advanced level English language learners through our English Language Acquisition (ELA) programme.

English is the language of instruction in all year levels and it is important that students are able to successfully access the curriculum within our available EAL/ELA support resources. We may therefore limit the number of EAL/ELA students in each year level to ensure they have access to needed services and that strong English language standards are maintained throughout the school.

We are a day school and do not have boarding facilities. Students must therefore reside with their parent(s) or other legal guardian appointed by their parents and live at a location within commuting distance to the campus.

We recognise the need to maintain a student-teacher ratio that offers maximum opportunities for instruction and learning. In principle, the maximum number of students per class is as follows:

• Early Years
  Classes and Students: 6 composite classes, 18-19 students each
  Teachers and Assistants: 1 teacher, 2 assistants
• Year 1
  Classes and Students: 6 classes, 20 students each
  Teachers and Assistants: 1 teacher, 1 assistant
• Year 2-4
  Classes and Students: 6 classes, 23 students each
  Teachers and Assistants: 1 teacher, 1 assistant
• Year 5-6
  Classes and Students: 6 classes, 23 students each
  Teachers and Assistants: 1 teacher, shared assistants
• Year 7-11
  Classes and Students: 6 classes, 23-24 students each
  Teachers and Assistants: Dependent on class subject
• Year 12-13
  Advisory classes and students: 6 classes, approximately 20 students each
  Subject classes, Student, Teacher and Assistant numbers: Dependent on class subject

• Early Years: 8:30 AM – 2:15 PM
• Year 1: 8:00 AM – 2:15 PM
• Year 2-6: 8:00 AM – 2:55 PM
• Years 7-9: 8:30 AM – 3:20 PM
• Years 10-13: 8:30 AM – 3:25 PM

If your child is joining any after-school or enrichment activities, these may be before, during, or after the school day. You will find out more about the activities offered, and when they are run, when you access the NIST Parent Portal.

Before then, if you have any additional questions regarding the school day timetable, please contact your Admissions team representative.

At NIST we believe uniforms help students belong to, and feel part of, our community. We encourage students to take pride in their appearance, and request they all wear the correct school uniform that is appropriate to their year level. 

Different year levels at NIST wear different uniforms, making it easy for members of our community to identify their year level. Different sports and activities teams also require different uniforms.

See the full catalogue of uniforms and school supplies.

Uniforms can be purchased at the School Shop, which is located within the school campus, and open during school teaching days. Located next to the School Shop is our parent run second hand uniform shop, NISTly Used, where lightly used uniforms can be purchased, and money raised goes to sustainability projects run within the community.

NIST Catering is headed up by our Director of F&B Services, and is led by our internationally trained Executive Chef, who is conscious of student food preferences and allergies, nutritional needs, and tastes. Breakfast, lunch, snacks and drinks are served daily at our central cafeteria, as well as at cafés and kiosks around campus.

Catering to a range of tastes, appetites and cultural preferences, NIST Catering serves Thai and international food, including halal, vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options. When seasonally available, our rooftop garden provides fresh organic vegetables and salad herbs, and our in-house baker chef bakes fresh breads daily.

Depending on the year level, your child/ren may be part of our Elementary Meal Plan system, or they may be able to make purchases independently. You will learn more about the range of options available when you join our community.

For Elementary Students, NIST provides all stationery and supplies they will need to help them through their school day. 

To make it easy for students to carry their items, please provide a backpack. For Early Years, the backpack can be small, however when a child enters Year 1 and above, it is recommended the backpack easily fits A4-size materials. 

We ask all students to carry and use a water bottle each day, and these can be filled up with filtered drinking water at the many water fountains around campus. Please ensure your child/ren knows not to drink regular tap water, as it is not potable, and they should only use filtered water fountains.

Individual class teachers will provide information to students and/or parents about any other supplies that may be needed for their specific class. 

Secondary students will be required to have their own stationery supplies, including a pencil case with pencils, eraser, pens, coloured pencils, glue, scissors and a ruler. 

Students in Years 9 to 13 also need a graphing calculator, and more details will be provided on the required calculator when you join NIST. 

To help Secondary students store sports or music equipment at the school, secondary students can request access to a locker. When your child/ren joins our community they will be shown where student lockers are located, and how to access them.

Yes, NIST offers a range of activities during the summer holidays. Arranged by both NIST staff and external providers, our summer activities programme usually runs for the first three weeks of the school holiday break, and most sessions are held in the morning at the NIST campus.

A fantastic range of sports and enrichment activities are offered including cooking, robotics, taekwondo, fencing, dance, swimming, creative writing, and much more. Private music lessons are also offered by our Music Academy staff.

These sessions are open only to NIST students, and more information is provided to parents through our internal newsletters and on our Parent Portal.

For more information on our extensive Activities programme, please visit our Activities page of our website.

Technology is an important educational tool, and at NIST we provide all students with instruction on how to use technology safely and efficiently. 

Starting from Year 1, all students will have their own iPad within the classroom, for use at school. Upper Elementary students will use shared MacBooks within the classroom. Students will use school laptops and iPads only when it applies specifically to their learning goals. 

All Secondary students will receive their own MacBook from the school as their main tool for education. This laptop is used throughout the school day, and is taken home to complete assignments and homework. We know that even when a student is very careful, accidents can happen, and as such parents/caregivers will receive information on how to easily purchase laptop insurance.

Our in-house IT Department monitors all computer activity within the school network, and we have many restrictions in place to help provide a safe operating environment for all members of our community. Virus software is also provided on all computers.

Yes. NIST offers a wide range of after-school and extracurricular activities for students with our current programme currently showing over 300 activities. The exciting and extensive range includes sports, art and crafts, drama and music, public speaking and debating, and STEM focused activities!

Activities usually take place immediately after the school day. Additional shuttle buses to/from our local BTS/MRT station, as well as Montri school buses, operate after hours to accommodate students attending activities.

Times may vary for some activities, particularly sports, with many extracurricular recreational and sporting events held during the weekend, either at NIST or off campus at other schools. The cost of activities also varies, with many offered free or at a minimal cost to cover school resources, while those activities run by external groups may cost more.

The full programme of after-school activities is available to parents through the NIST Parent Portal, and access is given at the time of your child/rens successful enrolment. If you would like to learn more about our activities programme, please visit our Activities page.

Regardless if you are joining our community mid year or at the beginning of the school year in August, we are a community who has been welcoming new members for over 30 years. And as our students and teachers come from an extensive range of different countries and cultures, we are no stranger to saying ‘welcome’ in many different languages and in many different ways.

As a new student, your child/ren will attend an orientation session, with the length of time and amount covered dependent on the year level they are entering. Students are often partnered with another student in the same class.

“Samakee” means togetherness in Thai, and at NIST we have a team of Samakee Ambassadors who welcome new members, introducing them to peers, giving tours of the school, planning orientation activities, and working to strengthen our community's sense of togetherness.

Parents are also invited to attend orientation days, where you will be introduced to members of our parent and teacher community, NIPTA, as well as members of your cultural group. For more information on this part of community building, please see our Community page. 
 

Students who join NIST at the start of our school year in August, are provided with a class schedule on the first day of school. Elementary students who join mid-year, in January, will receive their schedule from their homeroom teachers. Secondary students who join in January must first select their language and arts classes, at which point they will receive their schedules.

The 10-Day Cycle

NIST follows a 10-day cycle, with each school day identified by letters from A to J. Please refer to our published calendar for the 10-day cycle, as well as for key orientation dates, public holidays, Professional Learning Days, and school holidays. The 10-day cycle was implemented to avoid any disruption caused by public holidays that often fall on the same day of the week, as well as the possible disruption from regular extra-curricular activities, for example weekly piano lessons.

Please note the school calendars may be updated should there be any changes to public holidays, or if we receive directives from the Ministry of Education or from other government bodies.

We strongly believe that schools should be hubs for the community, places where you can connect with, and learn from, other members of the community. Dozens of events are hosted each semester to allow you to meet administrators, teachers and other parents. 

Upon joining NIST, you will receive weekly emails providing you with details on upcoming events organised by NIPTA, cultural groups, students, or by school support staff, as well as information sessions and presentations specifically for parents and caregivers. You will also receive welcome emails from your Cultural Group Representative and from NIPTA members.

If you do not receive these emails, simply contact your Admissions team representative and they will be able to help you.

• NIST Parent-Teacher Association (NIPTA): More than any other group, NIPTA provides a way for you as a parent or caregiver to be involved in the NIST community and meet others who share your interests. In addition to hosting regular small events such as coffee mornings and luncheons, NIPTA also organises major annual events such as Pinktober and Starry Nights, both of which generate funds that are directed toward charitable causes.

• Cultural Groups: For parents who wish to connect with others who share their languages or backgrounds, cultural groups are an excellent way to network and become involved in many events both inside and outside the school.

• Parent Sessions: Aligning to our core value of community, Parent Sessions serve to bring our parents together through a variety of presentations, webinars and workshops on a wide range of topics. These include school updates, teaching and learning workshops, wellness sessions, college counselling, and supporting our families through transitions. On Thursday afternoons an email is sent highlighting upcoming Parent Sessions, and most presentations are archived in the NIST Parent Portal in Veracross.

The school provides one ID card per parent. You will receive ID cards during your orientation, or on your child(ren)’s first day of school. If you would like to purchase additional cards for other family members or domestic staff/house help, you can do this by providing a photo, ID application form, and copy of the person’s ID card/passport at the reception desk at the school entrance. Additional cards are made for THB 300 each.

NIST Catering provides multiple services at the school, operating the main central cafeteria, as well as cafés and kiosks around campus. A range of healthy and nutritious food is available, and specific dietary requirements are catered for including halal, vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free meals. We ask that if your child/ren has food allergies that you inform your Admissions team representative and they will advise how this can be communicated to specific staff, you will also be asked to note this on a medical form collected when applying to NIST.

Elementary Students
A semester meal plan can be purchased for elementary students, which includes both a morning snack and lunch. A morning snack typically includes vegetable sticks, healthy cereal or sandwich, and lunch varies each day with options from our western, asian, vegetarian, and noodle menus.

Students also have the option of bringing lunch from home, however for safety and hygiene reasons, equipment for heating lunches is not available at school. The annual cost for the meal plan for early years and elementary students is approximately THB 25,000 per school year, and upon joining the meal plan you will be invoiced by our Accounts team.

For Early Years - Year 2, parents select their child/ren’s lunch using the NIST Parent Portal in Veracross, accessible when joining NIST, and meals can be ordered up to one month in advance, starting the first day of school. Years 3 to 6 students will choose their own meals in the cafeteria. 

Secondary Students
Secondary students are not part of the meal plan system, and are free to purchase their food independently at the cafeteria or at designated kiosks and cafés around campus. Secondary students use their ID card to make purchases, and they will top up money on their account using our kiosk payment machines located in the main cafeteria. Students typically use an average of THB 130-150 per day for snacks and lunch, however this is dependent on the individual child and how much they enjoy our food!

For those families who do not wish to use personal or public transportation, Montri Transportation Corporation offers private buses exclusively for the NIST community. The Montri bus service sees your child collected from their residence and driven directly to campus, stopping along the way to collect other students. 

For our younger students, from Early Years to Year 1, a NIST staff member will act as bus monitor and will escort your child/ren from their class onto their bus. For older students, the Montri service includes multiple timings to accommodate students enjoying after-school activities. 

Parents who wish to sign up for the Montri bus service are able to sign up using the NIST Parent Portal in Veracross, accessible when you join the NIST community. You can also request more information from admissions@nist.ac.th.

Uniform items can be easily purchased from the NIST Shop or from our sustainability focused NISTly Used second-hand uniform shop. Both shops are located next to our school Reception and Parent Lounge, second floor of the Innovation Building. The NIST Shop also sells school supplies, including water bottles, face masks, umbrellas, and the required graphic calculator for our older students, along with swimming costumes, sports uniforms and bags, sun hats, and more. 

The NISTly Used shop sells gently-used, second-hand uniforms, and is setup by the NIST Parent and Teacher Association (NIPTA) Sustainability team. Students and parents can freely go through the clean sorted clothes and for any items you take, please leave a small donation. All money raised goes towards sustainable activities within the community. If you have any questions about NISTly Used please contact nipta.sustainability@nist.ac.th

After completing your online enrolment and receiving access to the NIST Parent Portal in Veracross, you will be able to access the full NIST School Uniform Catalogue.

Depending on the number of sets of uniforms you wish to buy, please plan an allowance of approximately THB 5,000 per child. Payment at the NIST Shop can be made in cash or credit card (1.5% surcharge) only, or by QR code transfer if you are with a Thai bank. For ease, the NIST Shop also takes orders online, and a form can be completed in the Veracross NIST Parent Portal.  

It is highly recommended that uniforms are bought before the first day of school. To purchase uniforms before your child/ren starts at NIST, please contact our Admissions team at admissions@nist.ac.th to check school shop opening hours.
 

Each year level follows a different learning programme, and therefore each year level there will be different items your child/ren may need.

Elementary students will find all of their stationery and school supplies are provided by the school, unless it is something very specific your teacher asks for based on a school project or programme component.

Secondary students will need to come to school each day with a set of stationery, and for some subjects a textbook or reading material may be required. A Texas Instruments graphing calculator is needed for students in Years 9 to 13, and details of the required calculator will be provided when you join NIST.

To help Secondary students store sports or music equipment at the school, secondary students can request access to a locker. When your child/ren starts school they will be shown where student lockers are located, and how to access them.

Full details of the requirements for each year level will be provided when you receive a Student Handbook at the time of enrolment.

We believe in assigning homework not as “busy work”, but rather as a means of reinforcing concepts, building connections and practising skills. The amount of homework students receive varies by year, teacher and subject. In general, NIST teachers provide enough work to challenge students, while still allowing time for activities. Additional details will be provided when you receive a Student Handbook at the time of enrolment.

For Secondary students, the NIST Learning Centre is open after school three days a week. Teaching staff supervise these study sessions and they are available to offer specialised learning support in all academic subjects. If your child is needing additional support, we encourage you to review the Support Services we have available at NIST.