Not a tier decision — a curriculum and geography decision. ISE in Bowin runs American AERO + NGSS through IB Diploma on a campus whose current enrolment is not published inside Burapha Golf Club. TPIS in Nongprue runs British EYFS through dual-board A-Level on an ISP-managed Established campus. Both are full 2–18 day schools. Neither offers boarding. The question is which credential your child needs at 18 — and which commute your family can sustain daily.
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ISE and TPIS both use their school-published 2026/27 fee PDFs. The table compares standard tuition before full-year-payment discounts; TPIS includes lunch, Primary/KS3 textbooks, insurance and standard stationery. American and British year groups do not map one-to-one.
// In this guide → ISE editorial ↗ · TPIS editorial ↗ · ISE vs Rugby ↗ · ISE vs MIS ↗ · ISE vs St Andrew's ↗ · Garden vs ISE ↗ · IB Diploma hub ↗ · American schools hub ↗
| Dimension | ISE (Eastern Seaboard) | TPIS (Tara Pattana) |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 1993 (WASC since 1999 · IBO IBDP since 2004) | 2010 (ISP member since 2025) |
| Address | 282 Moo 5, Bowin, Sriracha — inside Burapha Golf Club | 88 M. 13 Pattanakarn Road, Nongprue, Banglamung |
| Curriculum | American AERO + NGSS → IB Diploma (or American diploma) | British EYFS → Cambridge/Edexcel IGCSE → A-Level |
| Sixth Form pathway | IB Diploma at G11–12 (American diploma also available) | Cambridge + Pearson Edexcel A-Level only |
| Boarding | No — day school only | No — day school only |
| Scale | enrolment not published · student-to-teacher ratio below 8:1 | Established-tier mid-band — larger cohorts than ISE |
| Accreditation | WASC · IBO (IB Diploma Programme) | Cambridge CAIE · Pearson Edexcel · EDT ISQM |
| Early years tuition | ฿357,600/yr (Pre-K2–K4, ages 3–5) | ฿273,000/yr Nursery · ฿357,000 Foundation · ฿408,000 Reception |
| Primary tuition | ฿514,200/yr (Kindergarten–Grade 5) | ฿453,000–฿505,000/yr (Years 1–6) |
| Middle school / Y7 tuition | ฿600,500/yr (Grades 6–8) | ฿574,000/yr (Grade 7) |
| Year 10 / IGCSE-prep tuition | ฿617,000/yr (Grades 9–10) | ฿627,000/yr (Grades 9–10 — peak TPIS band) |
| Sixth Form tuition | ฿646,000/yr (Grades 11–12, IB Diploma) | ฿665,000/yr (Years 12–13, A-Level · highest band) |
| Tuition structure | Tuition only — lunch, bus, uniform, IB exam fees separate | All-in: meals, insurance, textbooks (Primary + KS3), stationery included |
| Enrolment fee | ฿90,000 non-refundable + ฿50,000 refundable deposit | ฿90,000 non-refundable |
| Application fee | ฿5,000 | ฿3,000 (Nursery–Foundation) / ฿5,000 (Reception–Year 13) |
| Sibling discount | Tuition: 5% second child, 15% third, 25% fourth and later; enrolment waived from the third child | Tuition: 5% second child and 10% third; the 2026/27 schedule lists no fourth-child rate |
| Signature programmes | MAP · PSAT · SAT · TOEFL integrated · 306-seat Fine Arts Centre | Ror Dor Army Cadet · Duke of Edinburgh · LAMDA · dual exam-board at IGCSE/A-Level |
| Live editorial | ISE → read editorial | TPIS → read editorial |
| Published support-cost label | EAL only — ฿19,200–฿57,600/semester by assessed proficiency level; this is not a general learning-support tariff. | Separate school labels — “Special Educational Needs” and “English Language & Learning Support”; both are additional costs, with no amount published. |
Fee comparison is not apples-to-apples on inclusions: TPIS's published tuition includes lunch; ISE bills lunch separately. ISE is more expensive at early years (฿357,600 vs TPIS Nursery 2 at ฿273,000) but TPIS catches up by primary. At Sixth Form, ISE IB at ฿646,000 is ฿19,000 below TPIS Years 12–13 A-Level at ฿665,000, though the exit credentials differ. First-year cash outlay at ISE G11 is about ฿791,000 including the refundable deposit; TPIS Year 12 tuition plus application and enrolment is about ฿760,000.
If the United States — Common App, SAT on schedule, AP-style credit accumulation — ISE is the directory's established American AERO-to-IB route, with MAP/PSAT/SAT built into the academic year and WASC accreditation since 1999. Wells Chonburi is the other American-curriculum record, but it does not publish ISE's established IB pathway. If the UK specifically, with UCAS and A-Level subject specialisation at 16, TPIS is the direct British pathway. IB Diploma at ISE is accepted by UK universities routinely — so ISE is not off the table for UK-bound families — but A-Levels are TPIS's native credential.
ISE offers IB Diploma at Grades 11–12 (฿646,000/yr) — six subjects, Theory of Knowledge, Extended Essay, CAS. Students can also finish on the American high-school diploma without IB. TPIS runs A-Level only — specialise into three or four subjects via Cambridge or Edexcel boards. If you want the breadth and global portability of IB, ISE. If you want the focused British exam route, TPIS — and ISE's IB band is ฿19,000/yr lower than TPIS's A-Level band.
This comparison fails if you ignore geography. TPIS in Nongprue suits families in inland Banglamung, Huai Yai, or east Pattaya — 15–20 minutes from Jomtien. ISE in Bowin suits Sriracha, Laem Chabang, and Bowin itself — 30–40 minutes from central Pattaya depending on traffic. A Pattaya-beach family busing to ISE daily is a different calculus than a Sriracha industrial-zone family. Neither school is walkable from the coast.
ISE is deliberately tiny — a student-to-teacher ratio below 8:1, while current grade and graduating-cohort sizes are not published. Every teacher knows every child. Extracurricular depth is thin — no 1st XI football bench, no large debate circuit. TPIS is mid-band Established — larger year groups, Ror Dor Cadet, Duke of Edinburgh, LAMDA programmes that need cohort scale. If your child wants to disappear into a crowd, ISE is the wrong fit. If your child needs a small pastoral environment, TPIS may feel overwhelming.
Thai-passport families with sons approaching Year 10 should weigh TPIS's Ror Dor Army Cadet Programme — it can waive military conscription at age 21, and ISE does not run it. Families who relocate internationally may prefer ISE's 30-year WASC track record and IBDP history (IBO since 2004) over TPIS's one-year-old ISP membership (2025). Ask TPIS admissions what ISP has actually changed operationally — network ownership is new enough that the playbook may still be rolling out.
You need boarding — see Rugby vs Regents. You want British in Nongprue at lower fees than TPIS — see MIS vs TPIS. You want American curriculum but cannot accept the Sriracha commute — there is no second American school in the directory; ISE is the only one. For premium IB with boarding, see Regents or American schools hub.
Ask both admissions teams to price the same pupil for the same start year and payment basis. ISE publishes standard tuition of ฿357,600–฿646,000. TPIS publishes ฿273,000–฿665,000 from Nursery through Years 12–13. The endpoints cover different stages, so begin with the proposed class and keep any annual-payment discount on a separately labelled line.
At ISE, add application, non-refundable enrolment, refundable security deposit, lunch, bus, uniform, IB examinations and any assessed EAL charge. At TPIS, add its age-band application fee, one-time enrolment, transport, books for examination stages, uniforms, trips, examinations and any support charge; confirm which meals or services are included for the proposed class. Record every item as mandatory, optional, refundable, annual, termly or one-time.
ISE’s American pathway leads to its high-school diploma or IB Diploma. TPIS follows British progression through IGCSE to AS/A-Level using Cambridge International and Pearson Edexcel. Request the current subject list, prerequisites, timetable blocks, minimum cohort rules, counselling timetable and examination arrangements from each school. The relevant question is not simply IB versus A-Level, but whether the child’s intended subjects and prior study make that route usable.
For a pupil joining in secondary, ask admissions to identify any bridging work and courses that cannot be entered mid-cycle. For a younger pupil, observe how the present classroom prepares children for later assessment without allowing a distant credential to outweigh daily teaching and pastoral fit.
ISE publishes a student-to-teacher ratio below 8:1, not current class or graduating-cohort sizes. Ask for the actual proposed class, senior subject cohort and activity participation. At TPIS, ask the same questions rather than assuming its broader programme list is available at equal depth to every year group. Scale matters only through the opportunities and support this child can access.
Run Bowin and Nongprue journeys at school times, request exact bus quotes and record pickup duration and late-activity returns. The final offer should combine the class, complete invoice, qualification subjects, support and weekly commute. That makes the American/IB versus British/A-Level choice operational rather than theoretical.
Before paying, save a one-page decision record with the source date for every fee, the named admissions contact and every unresolved condition. Review it again before IGCSE, IB or A-Level choices begin. A school can remain a good fit while the child’s subjects, support needs or family location change; planned reviews prevent continuity from becoming an assumption.
Curriculum and location. ISE in Bowin, Sriracha runs American AERO and NGSS through IB Diploma (WASC since 1999, IBO since 2004). TPIS in Nongprue runs British EYFS through Cambridge and Edexcel A-Level. Both are Established-tier day schools with published 2026/27 fees.
TPIS in Nongprue is closer for most Pattaya families — typically 15–20 minutes inland from Jomtien or central Pattaya. ISE in Bowin/Sriracha is typically 30–40 minutes depending on traffic, closer to Laem Chabang industrial zone.
ISE offers IB Diploma at Grades 11–12 (฿646,000/yr tuition). TPIS does not — it runs British A-Level only at ฿665,000/yr. ISE is the only American-curriculum school in the directory with a fully authorised IBDP.
ISE IB Diploma at ฿646,000/yr is ฿19,000 below TPIS Years 12–13 A-Level at ฿665,000/yr. But the credentials differ. At middle school, TPIS Grade 7 (฿574,000) is also below ISE Grades 6–8 (฿600,500).
Yes. IB Diploma is accepted routinely by UK universities. ISE also runs MAP, PSAT, and SAT for US-bound students. TPIS A-Level is the more direct UCAS pathway if your child is specifically UK-university-bound.
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