Saudi Arabia has the largest Indian community in the Gulf, and its two embassy-managed schools, the International Indian School Riyadh and the International Indian School Jeddah, are among the largest schools in the world by enrolment: each has well over ten thousand students, in sections of 40 to 50, on the CBSE syllabus, at fees that are a fraction of any international school. Around them are the private CBSE schools, smaller and dearer. This guide is for a family arriving in Riyadh or Jeddah or moving school: the schools, how the fees compare, how admission and a transfer from India work, what the year looks like, and the one thing no fee covers, which is why so many Indian families in Saudi Arabia use online tuition.
Riyadh: the schools
| School | Run by | Curriculum | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| International Indian School Riyadh (IISR) | A management committee under the Embassy of India | CBSE, KG to Class 12 | The largest; the lowest fee; long waiting lists for KG; sections of 40 to 50 |
| Al Yasmin International School | Private | CBSE | Mid fee; smaller sections |
| New Middle East International School (NMEIS) | Private | CBSE | Mid fee |
| Al Alia International Indian School | Private | CBSE | Mid fee |
| Several smaller private Indian schools | Private | CBSE | Check the CBSE affiliation number on the school's website before enrolling |
Jeddah: the schools
| School | Run by | Curriculum | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| International Indian School Jeddah (IISJ) | A management committee under the Consulate General of India | CBSE, KG to Class 12 | The largest; the lowest fee; sections of 40 to 50 |
| Private CBSE schools in Jeddah | Private | CBSE | A smaller group than Riyadh's; mid fee; check the affiliation |
| Indian schools in Makkah and Taif | Community and private | CBSE | For families in the Western Province outside Jeddah |
The Eastern Province has its own: the International Indian School Dammam and the International Indian School Jubail, run the same way.
The fees, and what they buy
The International Indian Schools are the low-fee option by a wide margin. The fee is set by the management committee, published on the school's website as a figure by class, and revised rarely; it is a fraction of the private CBSE schools and a small fraction of the British and American international schools in the compounds, which charge Dubai-level fees. We do not reprint the figures, because they change and the school's fee circular is the only reliable source.
What the low fee buys is a full CBSE education at scale: qualified teachers, the NCERT syllabus, the board exams on site, and a community of thousands of children on the same path. What it cannot buy, at 40 to 50 to a section, is attention. The child who loses the thread in fractions in Class 6 or in the first algebra in Class 8 is not noticed until the term result, and in Saudi Arabia there is no tuition centre to go to afterwards, because paid private tuition is restricted. The private CBSE schools buy smaller sections (25 to 35) and better facilities; they do not change the syllabus, the board or the pace.
The year, the week and the exam
All the Indian schools in Saudi Arabia follow the April-to-March CBSE year: first-term exams before the Diwali break, pre-boards in December and January for Class 10 and 12, and the board exams in February and March, sat in the Kingdom on the same dates and with the same papers as India. The school week is Sunday to Thursday, with Friday and Saturday off; the school day ends early, often by 1 pm, with long bus rides home across Riyadh. Hindi is a second-language subject; Arabic is compulsory in the lower classes under Saudi rules; Islamic studies for Muslim students.
Admission and the transfer from India
Admissions to KG and Class 1 at IISR and IISJ open once a year for the April start, are announced on the school website, and fill fast; Riyadh keeps waiting lists. Transfers into Class 2 to 9 depend on seats. Transfers into Class 10 and 12 are restricted by CBSE's own rules, because the board registration happens in Class 9 and 11, so a family moving with a child in a board year should talk to the school before the move.
The documents, in the usual set: the transfer certificate from the previous school, countersigned by the district education officer or the CBSE regional office and attested as the school asks; the last report card; the child's passport and iqama (resident permit); the birth certificate; passport photographs. The school's admission page lists the exact set for the year.
Why families here use online tuition
Three things come together in Saudi Arabia: sections of 40 to 50, no tuition centres, and a time difference of 2.5 hours that makes 4 to 6 pm in Riyadh an ordinary Indian evening (6:30 to 8:30 pm). So the extra class is online, from a tutor in India, on the NCERT chapter the school is on, with Friday and Saturday mornings for the board years. We have taught IISR, IISJ and the private-school students since 2018; the pattern is the same as in Oman and the UAE, which we wrote up in online tuition in Oman for CBSE students, and the comparison of Indian school against international school in the Oman guide applies here unchanged. Our Riyadh and Jeddah pages have the class times and the price in riyals: about SAR 38 to 49 an hour, 1-on-1, master's-qualified tutor, the recording of every class. The first 30-minute class is free.
Questions parents ask
1Which are the Indian schools in Riyadh?
2Which are the Indian schools in Jeddah?
3What are the International Indian School fees?
4How do admissions work?
5Is private tuition allowed in Saudi Arabia?
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Shobha
Founder and lead tutor, Science with Shobha
Teaching maths, science and English to children online since 2018. 500+ students, 20+ tutors, families in nine countries.