finding schools in Calgary

 

If you have school age (or near) kids, then sometimes the biggest decision when moving anywhere,  is finding a school. The first decision you have to make when moving to Calgary and surrounding areas, is what type of school.

So at a general level there are 3 types of schools:

1) Public – which are ‘state’ run (CBE-Calgary Board of Education)

2) Separate- which are actually Catholic (CSSD- Calgary Catholic School District)

3) Private

But within these categories, there are a whole range of ‘specialised’ schools too, such as Art, French, Spanish, special needs, sports etc . It comes down to preferences and often the community in which you live (but if you are interested in a particular school that is not designated for your area,  and if you are  prepared to drive , then if the school has allocated space for out of area students- you may be able to register- but you should check with each school on an individual basis).

Also, once a year there is a report that comes out in the Herald  newspaper, and there is also find an online version- and go to these link which show the best schools in Alberta, which cover Private, Public (state), Catholic and Alternate (e.g. Sports schools/special needs) etc….

If you are keen on a particular school- then it would be worth considering find a home within that community, or catchment area (as not all communities have all types of schools and so will designate a school in another community to service that area). However, the first thing you have to do, if your children are not Canadian citizens , and if you want to go to a ‘free’ school (i.e. public or seperate) is to register , at the Registration centre for public this is 403 777-7373 and for Catholic call 403 500-2575). NOTE to register your child with these school systems, you must have an address within Calgary or surrounding areas to give. If you are going with private education, then registration is completed at each individual school

These centres will make an appointment for you to come in and register, and make sure you ask what documents they require for the appointment. From that point they will assess your child, and then inform you of your designated school, and the next steps to follow.

School class in Hannover (secondary class).

Image via Wikipedia

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