Elizabeth Henson asks whether Adelaide’s elite private schools are worth the money

The staggering cost of private schooling was rammed home last week with fees for many elite schools soaring over $30,000 a year. Elizabeth Henson argues that surely it’s not worth it.

Elizabeth Henson asks whether Adelaide’s elite private schools are worth the money. Picture: Simon Cross

If you’re more ‘broke’ than ‘Pembroke’ – don’t be disheartened, and welcome to the club.

We’d have T-shirts, but we’re waiting for a ‘50 per cent off’ sale.

The Advertiser this week revealed that Pembroke School has claimed the illustrious title of being Adelaide’s most expensive private school in 2024.

The Kensington Park-based institution is charging a whopping $31,251 per year to put a child through years 10, 11 or 12.

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Just to show-off some basic maths I learnt through my public schooling (kidding, I used a calculator), under the current prices, it would cost $93,753 for a child to do their final three years of secondary education at Pembroke.

For those who want to save some coin, St Peter’s College is a cheaper option at $31,190 for years 10, 11 or 12, while Prince Alfred College will set you back $30,870 and Walford Anglican School for Girls will cost $30,840.

Not all private schools are that expensive though. St Mark’s College in Port Pirie costs $4639 a year, while Trinity College in Gawler costs $7590 annually.

It’s still a far cry from the few hundred dollars a year you pay for public schooling.

But is elite private schooling – I’m talking these schools for which a lot of us would need to sell a kidney to afford – really worth it?

Pembroke School claimed the title most expensive private school in SA in 2024. Picture: Dean Martin

It certainly isn’t essential to a child’s success, is it? It’s more a case of if you believe it’s worth it, then it is. If you don’t believe it’s worth it, then it isn’t.

I say it’s akin to forking out thousands of dollars for designer clothes. Hear me out.

Sure, a Gucci dress may be well put together, made of quality fabric, and have better stitching than Kmart garb, but is it really $10,000 better? I don’t think so.

But if you can afford it and want it, there’s nothing wrong with treating yourself to some fancy clothes.

If I won the lotto tomorrow, I would absolutely have my “Pretty Woman” moment.

But you’re paying for the prestige, not the actual price of producing the product (plus a reasonable mark-up).

At the end of the day, both the budget frock and the designer dress serve the same purpose.

Same thing with paracetamol.

You can pay top dollar for Panadol or you can buy the budget home brand version – they’ve both got 500mg of paracetamol in them.

One might have a nicer coating than the other, but as long as you use them correctly, they’ll both be as effective as each other.

If you ‘use’ any school in the manner in which it is intended (to learn), you can succeed.

From conversations I’ve had, it seems most parents send their children to elite private schools largely for the prestige, the access to good contacts, and the extra-curricular activities.

And, if we’re honest, I’m sure it’s also to avoid the perceived ‘riff-raff’.

Although I suspect there’s Timmy Turds and Jessie Jerks at all schools, public and private.

What about the teachers? Do private schools have better teachers?

I’m sure there are fantastic educators at these private schools.

There are also fantastic teachers at public schools.

But when was the last time elite private schools tested themselves by giving a scholarship to a suspended public school student, who comes from a long line of intergenerational unemployment?

St. Peters College is now the second most expensive college in Adelaide costing $31,190 per year for years 10, 11 and 12. Picture Dean Martin

Public school educators teach many wonderful students who are smart, motivated and go on to have successful careers, but some also teach disadvantaged students, a few of whom present challenges not faced by elite private school teachers.

So it’s not really comparing apples with apples if you’re looking at things like NAPLAN results is it?

Individual schools can certainly have a positive effect on a child, but I would argue a child’s attitude to school and learning, and subsequently their success, is mostly influenced by their parents or caregivers, not by which school they attend.

If parents are good role models, and encourage and support their children, then their offspring have a pretty good shot at doing well at school and getting a good ATAR score regardless of whether they paid $30,000 per year, or $300, for their education.

And while some may say that having the likes of Prince Alfred College on your resume puts you at an advantage when applying for jobs, surely those same people must give some credit to the public school candidate who achieved the same tertiary qualification despite attending a not-as-flashy school and without being a member of a rowing team?

A student who is going to do well, will do well in either a public or a private school setting. Same goes for the students who are not going to do so well; they’ll bomb regardless of where they are.

Respect to anyone who sends their children to elite private schools, especially those parents who work their butts off and make huge sacrifices to pay for it.

But public schooling is pretty good too.