Admissions Process

An applicant’s entrance test experience is based on his/her age, academic history, level of English, and recent report cards.

Students applying to Kindergarten and above might do some math, writing, and/or reading.

Formal tests are not given to children applying to Nursery and Pre-Kindergarten. The Admissions Committee likes to see that these youngest applicants can focus for a few minutes on the conversation or activity, and follow some simple directions. General behavior and developmental readiness are most important at these young ages. There are no required academic skills to enter Nursery or Pre-Kindergarten, but during the interviews it is noted if the child has been exposed to colors, shapes, and numbers 1-5. Children might be in diapers at the time of the interview, but it is expected that diapers will no longer be needed by the time of enrollment (during the school day, 8am to 11:20am).

Brent’s Admissions Committee reviews several factors when considering grade level placement for applicants.

  • Date of birth of the applicant. For placement with peers, and noting the age the student would be by the time of graduation from Grade 12.
  • The grade level the applicant most recently completed, or is currently enrolled in. Also, if they have not yet been in school.
  • The curriculum an applicant is coming from. British Year 2 = Brent’s Grade 1, for example.
  • The school calendar months an applicant is coming from. Australia’s January to December vs. Brent’s August to May, for example.
  • The timing of enrollment. August and January are the most common months to join Brent.
  • Entrance test scores. Kindergarten applicants and above take math, reading, and writing tests on Brent’s campus.
  • Academic history.
  • Fluency in English.
  • Developmental readiness.
  • Students already enrolled at Brent are also considered. Our classroom environments, as well as the education and safety of our students, must be maintained.

Brent aims to place students with age-appropriate peers, without missing significant parts of a school year. Academic and social success can then be predicted when joining Brent, and for the years that follow.

So that all aspects are appropriately considered, completing the admissions process is required for an official decision. This includes the online application, on-campus entrance tests and interviews, and the final decision from Brent’s Principal.

Brent’s Admissions Committee is most cautious with younger applicants. The full range of their abilities is not yet known, and most of their years in education are still to come. By October of the school year being applied to, ideally, Nursery applicants would be age 3, Pre-Kindergarten applicants would be age 4, and Kindergarten applicants would be age 5. Exceptions are sometimes made for an applicant with a birthday in October, November and December but it is rare. Being the youngest in the class is often not the best solution, even for advanced students. When students excel in certain areas of the curriculum as compared to their classmates, elementary teachers differentiate curriculum so that students are appropriately challenged.

For applicants to Grades 1 and above, the cut-off is having a birthday by December 31. It is not used to simply promote applicants to a higher grade if they qualify by age, but so that they are not required to repeat a grade level if they were successful in their previous school. Age 6 by December 31 for Grade 1, Age 7 by December 31 for Grade 2, etc. Since earned credits are required to graduate from High School at the end of Grade 12, all eight semesters of High School are required for students in Grades 9 through 12.

If an applicant seeks enrollment at Brent significantly after the start of our school year without having started the grade level applying to, a placement at Brent in the same grade level already completed at their previous school can be expected. This can occur with applicants from Australia, Korea and Singapore due to different academic calendars. This lengthens a student’s time in a grade level, but provides an opportunity to more easily adjust academically and socially to a new school and country.

Please visit the Enrollment Process section for complete information.

http://brent.edu.ph/admissions/enrollment-process

A seat is reserved if a company will be billed for the tuition payments. Admissions will acknowledge receipt of the Guarantee Payment Letter from the company, and review the online application and uploaded documents. A reserved seat does not, however, assure acceptance. Company Dependents still need to qualify for acceptance.

For families being billed for the tuition payments, a seat is reserved when the Slot Reservation Fee has been paid–after the Principal has offered an acceptance. If not paid within a few business days, the seat can be given to another accepted student. Keep in mind a few things:

  • Applying online, uploading documents, and scheduling test and interview appointments does not change the status of the applicant. A seat in a grade level is not reserved in these early steps of the admissions process.
  • A family might inquire about seat availability of the grade level applying to and be informed by Admissions that seats are available, but by the time the Principal offers an acceptance the grade level has been filled. Seat availability can change within months, weeks, and even days.
  • Families are encouraged to schedule the test and interview appointments for the soonest available day on their schedule, and check with Admissions as often as needed regarding seat availability. This includes families new to Brent as well as families who already have other children enrolled at Brent. Admissions cannot get back to each applying family and inform them when it has shifted to being accepted to the Wait Pool.

Student Life

Brent’s school year generally begins early August, and finishes the end of May. The school has a vacation for Christmas and Easter, and observes Philippine holidays.

School Calendar SY 2023-2024

Nursery and Pre-Kindergarten students attend Monday through Friday, 8:00am to 11:20am.

Kindergarten through Grade 12 students attend Monday through Friday, 8:00am to 2:35pm.

There are two exceptions to the above information. 1) For all students, Thursdays are a “late start” day, with classes beginning at 8:40am so that teachers can attend curriculum meetings. The school day ends at the regular time on Thursdays. 2) On Friday, classes end at 2:00pm instead of 2:35pm.

Offices are closed on the weekends.

Brent students have two uniforms. One is for regular academic classes and one is for Physical Education (PE) classes. The uniforms are the same for Nursery through grade 12 and are available to purchase at Brent.

Girls wear a plaid skirt and a white shirt with Brent’s logo on the pocket for regular classes while boys wear khaki pants and a maroon polo shirt with Brent’s logo on the pocket.

PE uniforms for girls and boys consist of maroon shorts and a white T-shirt with the Brent logo. “House shirts” (emerald, gold, azure) are also required for school-wide House activities.

School supplies and textbooks are covered in the cost of tuition and are generally given on the first day of school. Students may use their own backpacks or bags.
Nursery and Pre-Kindergarten students bring a snack from home; students in these grade levels will be home for lunch. Students in Kindergarten through 5 should bring a snack, but they can buy lunch at school in addition to bringing lunch from home. A hot lunch menu is available for Kindergarten through grade 2 students and it is posted on our Website. Grades 3 through 12 also have a hot lunch menu, but also have choices in the main cafeteria such as rice with meat toppings, a salad bar, sandwiches, soup, pizza, pasta, chicken, and more. Students can bring lunch from home, if they prefer, and reheat their food in our microwaves. Students purchase food using their pre-loaded ID cards. A minimum of 500 pesos is required to load the card. A receipt is always offered with purchases. Please talk with your children about appropriate food choices. A vegetarian substitution is available for the main meat entree.
Students joining on the first day of the new school year are welcomed by their school level office (secretary, guidance), teachers, and students. It is ideal if new students first attend Open House, which is generally held a few days before the new school year starts. Open House gives new students the opportunity to tour the classes, meet teachers, students, and their guidance counselor and principal.

For students joining the school year late, Brent’s ROARS Welcome Team gets involved. ROARS stands for Reaching Out to All Recent Students. The program is is slightly different from one school level to the next, but in general homeroom teachers and guidance counselors work with members of Student Council to select “buddies” for the new students. Recognizing that joining any school after the year has started can be a cause of nerves for new students, Brent works at pairing up new students with a student who is an active member of Brent’s community. Having a student to eat lunch with, and ask questions of–knowing the student volunteered to do exactly that–helps our new members feel welcome and connected.

Guidance Counselors and Principals in Middle and Upper School host an annual New Student Lunch first semester. New students enjoy food and drinks provided by the school, and through fun activities are encouraged to provide feedback on how their start to Brent was. This feedback (some serious, some lighthearted) is used to improve our process of welcoming new students in future years. Some actual responses from new students are:

What do you like most about Brent?
Way of teaching
I have made many friends from different countries
Everyone is nice
Lots of activities to do
The facilities
Everything
There are so many people here to help you
FOOD 🙂

What changes would make Brent even better?
Late start everyday–not just Thursday
The locker lock was hard to learn to open
No uniform 🙂
I’m satisfied right now 🙂
More foreign language options
Longer lunch time
Back rests on the lunch tables
No homework

After-school activities are an important part of the Brent experience. Students are encouraged to join a club or sport to further their development as a well-rounded individual, as well as make friends outside of class.

You are encouraged to visit the Activities section of the website for more information. The current “Sports, Activities, Recreation and Clubs” pamphlet posted there will show you the opportunities for your child’s grade level. (A small sample of examples includes Lego Club, Dance, Orchestra, Computer Club, Chess, Robotics Club, Academic Bowl, National Honor Society, Golf, Taekwondo, Cross Country, Swim Club, Tennis, Touch Rugby, Volleyball, Baseball, Basketball, and Soccer.)

Brent supports students in mind, body and spirit. In addition to the rapport between faculty and students, this support is scheduled weekly through the set academic curriculum, physical education classes, and occasional religious activities. All students are required to go through Brent’s established curriculum.

Brent’s religion curriculum is non-evangelistic. Students practicing Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism, Islam and other religions participate in our Christian-based curriculum without experiencing discrimination.

Lower School religion courses meet once a week and are gospel based. Weekly chapels are lively and are structured around themes such as responsibility, friendship, and honesty—values that the general population agree on as important, regardless of religious orientation.

Middle School religion courses study the main religions of the world, with the understanding that well-educated people should have this knowledge, in addition to Christianity. Weekly chapels are also lively and theme based.

Upper School students attend religion classes for a semester of grades 9, 10 and 11. Courses focus on the influence of the Old Testament in the foundational ideas of Western Civilization (grade 9), exploring the life and teachings of Jesus and the spread of Christianity (grade 10), and encouraging students to think critically and cogently about current moral and ethical issues, considering various religious and secular approaches (grade 11). Upper School students also attend a weekly chapel.

English Support (ESL) and Foreign Language

Please visit the English as a Second Language (ESL) section under Academics for complete information –
http://brent.edu.ph/academics/esl/
Our foreign language program begins in grade 6. Students in Middle and Upper School have a choice between French, Spanish, Mandarin and Tagalog. Many families wanting their elementary-aged children to receive foreign language instruction have been successful in finding private tutors to come to their homes.

High School and Beyond

“The International Baccalaureate Organization aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect. To this end the IBO works with schools, governments and international organizations to develop challenging programmes of international education and rigorous assessment. These programmes encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right.” (Mission Statement of the IBO)

The IB Diploma is an internationally recognized two-year program (grades 11 and 12) of studies with syllabi and external examinations developed by the IBO in Geneva, Switzerland. Seniors who score high on IB exams not only fulfill Brent’s graduation requirements, but may also receive college credit in universities in America, Canada, University of the Philippines and Enderun Colleges based in Manila.

Please visit the International Baccalaureate tab for more information –
http://brent.edu.ph/academics/international-baccalaureate/

Students receive support in the university application and selection process from our Upper School Guidance Counselors. For details about the specific schools where recent graduates have been accepted and matriculated to, please see our Upper School Profile.

Transportation

We have a fleet of Brent owned and operated buses with routes providing service to communities north of Brent. In addition to a driver, a bus attendant is assigned in order to provide supervision and assistance to students. A security guard is also present on our longest routes.

Other Information for Parents

Absolutely! Brent has a very active PTA (Parent Teacher Association) that is involved at all grade levels. The primary purposes of the PTA are to promote an atmosphere of goodwill and cooperation, and to promote a continuous channel of communication between the many groups of the Brent community.

Studies have shown that students perform better when parents take an active role in the school, and we enjoy the involvement and help of those parents who have time to volunteer. Parents can attend meetings where current issues are discussed and future events are planned, sign up for any of our existing committees and projects, be a Homeroom Parent or Grade Level Representative, chaperone field trips, and more.

The Alabang communities have a high population of Brent students due to the close proximity. Students do, however, live in Makati, Pasig, Tagaytay, Los Banos, and other areas.
Brent is an ideal choice for families looking for a school to support students in mind, body and spirit. The whole child is important to us. This is evident in the Brent curriculum and in our teaching professionals who differentiate curriculum where appropriate to account for the various ways students best learn and the differing prior knowledge each student brings with them.

Brent provides a supportive and friendly environment for the whole family. This is especially important to those families in transition who are new to the Philippines. New families frequently report finding a “home away from home” after joining the Brent Family. Our active PTA (Parent Teacher Association) is an important part of our school, and there are many ways to be involved.

A small but important factor that should not be overlooked is that our location south of Manila has the benefit of cleaner air, which is becoming increasingly more important.

The best way to decide if Brent is your best choice is to make an appointment with the Admissions Office for a tour. While touring our facilities and experiencing the friendly atmosphere on campus, it is not uncommon for a parent to say, “I wish I could go to school here!” Please visit, and see for yourself what makes Brent a unique environment in the Philippines.

Brent School Profile