How much parents are paying for their children to attend top Victorian schools
Thinking of sending your child to a private school? You better start saving — while fee increases for 2020 at Victorian non-government schools are shaping up as modest, you’ll be paying top dollar to match the top tier schools.
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Boarding at prestigious Geelong Grammar School has cracked the $70,000 mark per year for local students.
Private schools have started sending out invoices for next year and at some schools the fees have inched up by between $1000 and $2000 on 2019.
Most schools require payment of the first term for the following year this month. International students are charged higher fees.
The cost for boarding and tuition at Geelong Grammar for domestic senior students from Year 9 to 12 in 2020 is $72,660 while international students pay $83,540 for years 9 to 12.
There are just under 600 boarders at the Corio campus, drawn from 25 countries and within Australia.
The cost does not include music lessons, instrument hire, booklists, skiing, extra tutoring, software and commuter costs.
Geelong Grammar allows students from years 10 to 12 to enrol as day boarders, attending the school until late each day and receive lunch and dinner before heading home at 8.30pm four nights of the week.
The fee is $42,792 per year.
Meanwhile, parents of Year 12 students at Trinity Grammar, in Kew, won’t get much change out of $35,000.
The annual fee is $33.376 plus a compulsory fixed charge of $1380 which covers accident insurance, the school diary, publication, use of sporting equipment and bus travel to and from sport and training.
If paid upfront the fee for Year 12 is $32,708. Boarding for all year levels is $28,940.
Attendance as a day student in prep is $22,604 plus a $1,120 fixed charge.
Scotch College fees for Year 9 to 12 next year will be $35,925 up around $1350 from last year.
The boarding fee is $28,548 per year, paid in three instalments.
Fees for prep and year 1 are $28,728 per year, reaching $30,777 for years 3 to 6.
Methodist Ladies College will charge $33,180 for Year 12 plus a $1110 compulsory technology levy. In 2019 the fees were $32,130.
Prep fees start at $19,800, tipping over $30,000 in Year 7. The boarding fee is $30,141 for all years.
Armadale’s Lauriston Girls’ School is charging $35,876 for years 10 to 12, up $1346 from the previous year’s $34,528.
Prep to year 2 is $23,616, up from $22,728 in 2019.
Brighton Grammar’s Year 7 to 12 fee for 2020 is $32,670.
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A compulsory charge of $1,099 which covers most of the cost of excursions, incursions, camps, student accident insurance and school photographs is levied. It rises to $3,106 in Year 9, reflecting that most schools do more excursions and incursions during the year.
Independent Schools Victoria chief executive Michelle Green said her understanding was that some schools were able to maintain fees at current levels while others had increased fees marginally.
“Independent schools each set their own fees, based on their individual circumstances,” she said.
“In setting fees, they take into account a complex range of factors, the cost of educating each student, changes in enrolments, the cost of additional or special programs they might run, and maintenance and expansion of facilities.
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“They also have to take into account likely changes in teachers’ salaries, which are the largest part of a school’s operational expenses.”
Ms Greene said schools were “acutely aware of the financial capacity of parents who make substantial sacrifices to educate their children in schools that meet their needs”.
“While fees are a matter for individual schools, we’re aware that, in budgeting for next year, some schools have been able to maintain fees at current levels,” she said.
“Others, based on their individual circumstances, have increased fees. My understanding is that, where increases have been necessary, these have generally been lower than in previous years.”
According to the State Government figures for February 2019, 356,983 students attend non-government schools in Victoria. These range from low cost Catholic primary schools to big ticket private colleges. The census identified 631,453 students attending government primary and secondary schools.