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Go to child profileStudents from across Canada and beyond choose to step outside of their comfort zones at NJC. While studying Canadian grade 12 curriculum and living in Switzerland, they explore Europe and make their best friends. Authentic immersion in French language and Swiss culture enables them to learn about themselves. New-found independence and international experience allow them to realize their passions and talents. Academic preparedness and a global perspective lead to acceptances from the finest universities.
What learning looks like now: NJC Students are able to attend in-person classes. Schools in Switzerland re-opened for in class instruction in June 2020. Additional cleaning and distancing measures are in place. European travel is also possible with some restrictions.
Curriculum delivery for 2020/21:
Grades | Living Arrangement | Delivery Model | Frequency |
---|---|---|---|
Homestay | Gr. 12 - Gr. 12 | In-person | Full-time |
NJC offers bus transferring. Service options offered are airport pick-up.
The regions NJC offers busing from are:
Additional notes: Students use local public transportation to travel from homes to school. School trips include buses, trains and airplanes.
Library and classes
School foyer building
Neuchâtel Junior College was founded in 1956 and, from then to now, there’s been nothing else quite like it when it comes to options for North American students. It’s so unique that, in some ways, it’s hard to believe that it exists at all: a school, offering the Ontario curriculum, nestled within the stunning natural and diverse cultural environments of Europe. The views are inspiring, as is the proximity to international organizations, including the UN in Geneva. Skiing in Zermatt, visiting Flanders Fields on Remembrance Day … it goes on and on. The instruction is rigorous, and classes are intimate. The majority of students arrive from Ontario, though the student population is drawn from across Canada, the US and abroad. The ideal student is one who is inclined to make the most of the vast range of opportunities that the school provides through this unique educational experience.
Focus |
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Academic |
Subject | offered |
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Evolution as consensus theory | |
Evolution as one of many equally viable theories | |
Evolution is not taught |
Subject | offered |
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Biology | |
Chemistry | |
Ecology | |
Geology | |
Meteorology | |
Physics | |
Physiology | |
Zoology |
Subject | offered |
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Acting | |
Dance | |
Drama/Theatre | |
Graphic Design | |
Music | |
Visual Arts |
Expressive | |
Disciplined |
Subject | offered |
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Computer science | |
Robotics | |
Web design |
Flexible pacing style | offered |
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Subject-streaming (tracking) | |
Multi-age classrooms as standard | |
Ability-grouping (in-class) as common | |
Frequent use of cyber-learning (at-their-own-pace) | |
Regular guided independent study opportunities | |
Differentiated assessment |
Subject Type | offered |
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Learning strategy and study counselling; habit formation | |
Extra support and minor accommodations for children experiencing subclinical difficulties |
Subject Type | offered |
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Accommodations | |
Modifications | |
Extra support |
Read our guide to special needs schools and special education
Program | offered |
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Full-time gifted program (parallel to rest of school) | |
Part-time gifted program (pull-out; parallel to rest of class) |
Curriculum delivery: Enrichment (The main focus is on enrichment. This means that while students may work at a marginally quicker pace than public school peers, the primary aim is to study subject in broader and deeper ways.)
Program | offered |
---|---|
Custom subject enrichment (special arrangement) | |
Custom curriculum compacting (special arrangement) | |
Guided independent study (custom gifted arrangement) | |
Cyber-learning opportunities (custom gifted arrangement) | |
Formalized peer coaching opportunities (specifically for gifted learners to coach others) | |
Custom subject acceleration (special arrangement) | |
Career exploration (custom gifted arrangement) | |
Project-based learning (custom gifted arrangement) | |
Mentorships (custom gifted arrangement) |
In grade Gr. 12, NJC students perform an average of >2 hours of homework per night.
12 | |
---|---|
NJC | 160 mins |
Site Average | 106 mins |
Lettered or numbered grades | Gr. 12 to Gr. 12 |
Prose (narrative)-based feedback | Gr. 12 to Gr. 12 |
Parent-teacher meetings | Gr. 12 to Gr. 12 |
Competitive sports: 10
Recreational sports: 20
Neuchâtel Junior College offers 12 clubs and extracurricular programs.
12 | |
Boarding | SF 30,000 / semester |
Grade range that need-based aid is offered: | 12 |
Percentage of grade-eligible students receiving financial aid | 10% |
Average aid package size | $10,000 |
Percentage of total enrolment on financial aid | 10% |
Total aid available | $60,000 |
This school works with Apple Financial Inc. for processing financial applications
Interview
Supplementary Essays
Application File Review
Apple Financial Third-Party Review
Grades | Gender | Living Arrangement | Enrolment | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Group 1 | Gr. 12 to Gr. 12 | Coed | Homestay | 75 |
Total enrolment | 75 |
Average class size | 14 |
% of international students (total enrolment) | 10% |
Number of different nationalities within student population | 5 |
12 | |
---|---|
Homestay Enrollment | N/A |
Class Size | 70 |
Assessment | Required | Grades |
---|---|---|
Interview | ||
SSAT | ||
SSAT (out of province) | ||
Entrance Exam(s) | ||
Entrance Essay | 12 - 12 |
Application fee: $175
Registration fee: N/A
Deposit:
N/A
This is the percentage of applicants typically accepted into the school. So if 50 students are admitted out of 100 applicants, the school has an overall acceptance rate of 50%.
Student Entry Points
This shows approximately how many openings there are likely to be in each grade in a typical year, as well as the estimated acceptance rate for each grade level.
Student Type | 12 |
---|---|
Boarding Acceptance (Acceptance rate) | 0 |
Homestay Acceptance (Acceptance rate) | 0 |
Average graduating class size | 70 |
Students accepted into post-secondary studies upon graduation | 100% |
Percentage of students who attend post-secondary institutions outside of Canada | 1% |
Students who attended a Ivy+ school Number of students in the past 5 years that that attended one of Harvard, Yale, Princeton, University of Pennsylvania, Dartmouth, Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Stanford, University of Chicago, Oxford or Cambridge (UK) | N/A |
Queen's University | 19% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Western University | 13% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
McGill University | 12% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dalhousie University | 7% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
University of Toronto | 5% |
Neuchâtel Junior College Graduates’ Post-Secondary Studies:
Aggregate of All Schools’ Post-Secondary Studies:
Career planning | |
Internships |
Mentorship Program | N/A |
University counseling |
One characteristic of all good students is an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. Our unique school, perched on the shores of Lake Neuchâtel in the beautiful Swiss town of the same name, is ideally suited to students of this kind. Students come to us eager to learn more about the world around them; drawn to change, they sense that the world has more to offer them if they could just step outside the boundaries of their local experiences. Neuchâtel Junior College exists for these types of students at this pivotal time in their lives, and here, they learn about themselves as much as they learn about the world.
In 1956, NJC’s visionary Founder, Leonard Wilde, knew that, “To be a leader today, one must travel the world.” This enduring idea is just as – if not more – relevant today. As much as our students have likely travelled to places with their families before, in most cases, they have not gone on an extended, independent journey. The Neuchâtel experience offers a view to the world beyond childhood borders, and our trips are integrated with the curriculum to make the learning experience richer and fuller. The fact that students have chosen this journey to NJC sets them apart both geographically and personally from where they began, thereby transforming them well beyond the potential of any single school trip experienced before.
Over the course of many months, our students explore centres of Western European civilization, which helped to shape our own culture, giving them knowledge of the past with which to consider the future. They visit unfamiliar and exotic places to gain an insight into the similarities and differences of other cultures in this increasingly global community. Inspired by NJC’s program, our students also learn that they can have a positive impact on each place they visit. This may be through participation in a service rip, involvement in a Model UN activity, or by helping to make our school community a better place through personal character, talent, ideas and leadership. All of this they experience while immersed in their studies, surrounded by inspiring teachers and classmates, and living with a local Swiss, French-speaking family. This formula, unique in the world for over 60 years, consistently opens minds, broadens perspectives, and inspires graduates to make their place in the world more meaningful and purposeful.
Who is best suited to attend Neuchâtel Junior College? I would encourage you to take advantage of this transformational experience if you are willing to meet two very important expectations. You must come prepared to work hard in your academic studies and be curious about the world around you; these are prerequisites so that you will be able to apply your newfound knowledge, confidence, independence and leadership in your chosen university, in the career that you wish to pursue, and throughout your life.
I look forward to meeting you soon. A bientôt!
October 20, 2020
A New School Year Begins
Read about the adventures of the Class of 2021 and what they've been up to since they arrived in Switzerland!
Read full article
October 20, 2020
NJC Featured in Globe and Mail Article
Read about how NJC has adapted during COVID 19!
Read full article
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