The SMIC Private School Shanghai

At a glance

Where a detail is not officially published we mark it clearly rather than guess. Always confirm current figures with the school.

Curriculum and academics

SMIC runs two parallel programmes on one campus, a Chinese track and an international division, and this profile focuses on the international division. That division teaches a United States style curriculum from early childhood through elementary, middle and high school, aligned to research based standards such as Common Core, and it keeps daily Chinese instruction across the grades so pupils develop in both languages.

In the senior school the international division offers Advanced Placement courses and is an authorised AP and SAT or ACT test centre. It is also noted as one of a small number of schools in mainland China to run the AP Capstone programme, a research and seminar based diploma track that sits alongside individual AP subjects. Our Shanghai city guide shows how this compares with the other American style campuses in the city.

The school opened in the early 2000s alongside the SMIC technology community in Zhangjiang and has grown into an established Pudong provider. Because the campus houses two tracks, families should confirm which division a place is offered in and how the daily Chinese programme is pitched for a child who is new to the language.

The SMIC Private School Shanghai fees

SMIC publishes tuition for its international division, and it sits in the mid band for Shanghai. For 2025/26 annual tuition in the international division was listed in a range of about RMB 140,000 to RMB 166,000 depending on the stage, with early childhood billed at around RMB 70,000 a semester. That keeps it well below the premium foreign flagships.

A non refundable application fee of RMB 1,000 is payable as part of the application, and families should budget for optional services on top of tuition. For the wider picture our guide to international school fees in Shanghai divides the market into bands, and our Shanghai secondary fees breakdown lines up the senior figures. Confirm current figures with the school.

• Annual tuition: international division about RMB 140,000 to RMB 166,000 for 2025/26.
• Early childhood: billed at around RMB 70,000 a semester.
• Application fee: a non refundable fee of RMB 1,000 with the application.
• Optional services: transport and activities are billed separately.

Admissions

The main intake follows the August start of the school year, and applicants sit an age appropriate assessment. Because SMIC runs two tracks, families should be clear at the outset that they are applying to the international division, and should ask about any language expectations for the daily Chinese programme.

Relocating families should contact the admissions office directly about mid year availability and about how a child new to Chinese is supported, since daily Chinese runs across the grades in both tracks.

Location and who goes there

The main campus is in Zhangjiang in Pudong, close to the technology and research district that gives the school its name, so it is convenient for families living and working in eastern Shanghai. As always, families should map the commute from their chosen neighbourhood before they apply.

The community mixes returning Chinese families with international residents drawn by an American pathway and strong Chinese provision. Many families comparing SMIC also look at the larger American campuses, so our Shanghai city guide shows how the options compare on curriculum, stage and fee band.

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