One more basic cost of living increase could quite easily see Hilton College, South Africa’s most expensive school, become the first one in the country to charge over R300 000 per annum by 2019. As expensive as the top private schools appear to be in relation to top state schools (roughly three times the cost) and in spite of the state of the economy, SA’s top private schools don’t seem to be slowing down in terms of popularity. The likes of Kearsney and Michaelhouse are even undergoing expansions to allow them to take in more students.
Thanks to data provided by the website https://businesstech.co.za here is analysis of the 20 most expensive schools:
| # | School | Reported in 2014 | Reported in 2018 | Increase | % Incr | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hilton College | KwaZulu-Natal | 209,000 | 276560 | 67560 | 32% |
| 2 | Michaelhouse | KwaZulu-Natal | 192,000 | 265,680 | 73,680 | 38% |
| 3 | St Andrew’s | Eastern Cape | 182,700 | 252,990 | 70,290 | 38% |
| 4 | Roedean School for Girls | Gauteng | 181,140 | 252,341 | 71,201 | 39% |
| 5 | Kearsney College | KwaZulu-Natal | 181,350 | 242,220 | 60,870 | 34% |
| 6 | Bishops | Western Cape | 168,140 | 240,380 | 72,240 | 43% |
| 7 | St Mary’s School for Girls | Gauteng | 166,155 | 234,540 | 68,385 | 41% |
| 8 | St Andrew’s School for Girls | Gauteng | 174,860 | 233,810 | 58,950 | 34% |
| 9 | St Stithians | Gauteng | 166,691 | 232,640 | 65,949 | 40% |
| 10 | St Martin’s | 232,120 | ||||
| 11 | St Alban’s College | Gauteng | 181,000 | 229,410 | 48,410 | 27% |
| 12 | St John’s | Gauteng | 178,523 | 227,815 | 49,292 | 28% |
| 13 | Kingswood College | Eastern Cape | 158,355 | 221,370 | 63,015 | 40% |
| 14 | Diocesan School for Girls | Eastern Cape | 157,590 | 219,420 | 61,830 | 39% |
| 15 | St Mary’s DSG, Pretoria | Gauteng | 209,675 | |||
| 16 | Somerset College | Western Cape | 167,736 | 208,515 | 40,779 | 24% |
| 17 | St Cyprian’s | Western Cape | 148,560 | 204,000 | 55,440 | 37% |
| 18 | The Wykeham Collegiate | KwaZulu-Natal | 154,820 | 196,600 | 41,780 | 27% |
| 19 | Treverton College | KwaZulu-Natal | 142,400 | 191,840 | 49,440 | 35% |
| 20 | Herschel Girls’ School | Western Cape | 157,560 | 190,150 | 32,590 | 21% |
Note: the Hilton fees list above was not part of the Businesstech article.
The detailed Businesstech article is here:
These are the 20 most expensive schools in South Africa in 2018
Dis meer geld as wat n B graad aan n goeie varsity bv Kofsies of die Puk kos……
@Djou: Bush’s bike has a Bell’s on it.
@Bush: You should consider selling the bell. It is an unnecessary add on, therefore a luxury.
@Djou: I gave up drinking and sisters for 3 years. Sold my Maserati bought bicycle with a bell on it.
@Djou: Anything that is sin tax?????
@Bush: Do you consider whiskey and liquor as luxuries?
@Bush: agree, best value and investment.
@Veg: I’ve always wondered why there’s a difference in sac and dsg fees. Maybe a sac/dsg parent can shed some light????
Your children are the most important possessions a parent has. Forget all your luxury items. Take that money and spend it on your kids education. House did wonders for my son. Of which I’m exstremely grateful. As a parent I can’t put a price to that. I would pay that money over again. 2 3 House 2 3 Education
@Quagga: value is extremely relative and definately in the eye of the beholder. Value for one would be glitter and gold, for another a warm hug from a loved-one. The issues you raise are all quite true, but I question the values pertaining to the value you raise. Having a huge head start to 99.9% of your fellow South Africans just because you know someone can be perceived as very unfair and easily be labelled as “white monopolistic capital”. Not that it is in the realm of “white” any more, at all. I do not believe that is the true reason for all these parents to send their kids to these prestigious schools. The other benefits you have touched.
There is however also a law of diminishing returns. Probably all of the real education and growth benefits can be provided by any good government school at a marginal cost. THAT is real value. You also do not go through life irritating the crap out of others with a privileged air (not true to all).
@Wyvern: When I was teaching in the Albany that would be a point I would make to a number of kids who would ask my opinion about attending a private. On a different note the St Andrews college boys must get much better food or they eat more than the DSG girls.
@McCulleys Workshop: Agree 100%.
@Quagga: The bottom line is, it costs big cash to maintain the facilities and run the programs offered by these schools. All things considered, there are numerous fantastic schools in SA, producing well rounded kids, some private that don’t appear on this list and some government. When one considers the academic results of schools like College and Rondebosch, you realize how much they are doing right.
@Quagga: Spot on! Often the point you make in your 3rd sentence gets overlooked.
That is the price not the value. Many of those proud institutions offer so much more than just schooling, they offer a world class education with the best educators money can buy. They offer a network of influence in many cases that last well beyond the formal schooling years. Some may seem or even actually be overpriced yes, but some on that list could even be under priced, depending on what they offer and what your perspective is on education. Worth paying so much? If you can afford it most definitely. Their continued existence certainly seems to suggest so. There are however many other schools out there which are less pricey but offer tremendous value as well. Even if you look at that list you can see very intense competition among that market segment to keep costs affordable for parents.
Ongelooflik