Amity International School Amsterdam vs DENISE
🇳🇱 Amsterdam · Side-by-side comparison on verifiable public data.
Which should you choose?
Both run IB, so the difference is inspection rating, boarding, and fees rather than the curriculum itself. The choice comes down to target curriculum, whether you need boarding, and budget — verify fees against each school's own figures.
Neither Amity International School Amsterdam nor DENISE sits in a market with a public inspectorate, so both are assessed on verifiable accreditation, curriculum authorisation, and published data rather than an official quality rating. On cost, DENISE has the noticeably lower entry fee — a material difference for budget-conscious families. See the table below for the figures, and verify against each school's own published fees.
Key Facts
| Amity International School Amsterdam | DENISE | |
|---|---|---|
| Curriculum | IB | IB / National / Blended |
| Ages | 3-18 | 4-18 |
| Languages of instruction | English | English, Dutch |
| Annual fees | EUR 20,950-26,905/year (2026-2027) | EUR 0 (publicly funded; no tuition, 2026/2027) |
| Enrollment | 430 | 700 |
| Boarding | Day only | Day only |
| Accreditations | IB World School (IBO), CIS Member School, NEASC (New England Association of Schools and Colleges) - full accreditation, Jan 2026, Amity Education Group | IB World School, Esprit Scholen (Dutch public school group), Language Friendly School |
Strengths
- ✓Full IB continuum (PYP, MYP and DP) under one roof for ages 3-18, giving a single inquiry-based pathway from early years to university entry
- ✓Triple recognition - IB World School, CIS member and full NEASC accreditation (Jan 2026) - unusually strong for a school opened in 2018
- ✓Dedicated EAL team with assessment-based, small-group and in-class support, well suited to children arriving with little English
- ✓English language of instruction delivered by native English-speaking teachers, with Dutch and French offered as additional languages
- ✓Genuinely international community (~430 students, 30-plus nationalities) just south of Amsterdam, with bus service and after-school care for working families
- ✓Publicly funded with no standard tuition, giving rare low-cost access to international/IB education in Amsterdam
- ✓Genuine bilingual Dutch-English instruction with native teachers in both languages
- ✓Strong newcomer and EAL provision (EOA / ISK / Taalklassen) plus Language Friendly School recognition
- ✓Full 4-18 continuity across early years, primary, secondary and a sixth-form-equivalent IB Diploma
- ✓Highly international community drawing students from more than 70 nationalities
Trade-offs
- !Young school (opened February 2018) without the long track record or established reputation of older Amsterdam international schools
- !No published DP score averages or examination-results history available on the official site
- !Curriculum messaging mixes IB continuum branding with alternative upper-school pathways (IGCSE-style and a NEASC Amity High School Diploma), which can be confusing to parents
- !Premium fees (over EUR 26,000 for Diploma years) for a school still building its outcomes record
- !No open, verified IB score averages or published exam-results data located publicly
- !As a Dutch state school it carries no single graded inspection band, limiting easy comparison
- !Fee and admissions detail beyond 'publicly funded, no tuition' is not transparently published
- !Capacity-constrained and oversubscribed-style demand as it grows toward a stated ~950-student target
Best Fit For
- • Internationally mobile families wanting an uninterrupted IB pathway from age 3 to 18
- • Children arriving with limited English who need structured EAL support
- • Families based in or near Amstelveen / south Amsterdam seeking an English-medium day school
- • Parents who prioritise recognised accreditations (IB, CIS, NEASC) over a long-established reputation
- • Internationally mobile families wanting an IB Diploma without private-school fees
- • Newcomer and expat children who need structured Dutch-language and EAL support
- • Families wanting their child anchored in both Dutch life and an international curriculum
- • Parents prioritising a diverse, multilingual peer community over prestige branding
University Placement
School-reported · not independently verified
School-reported, unverified: Amity Amsterdam positions its Diploma Programme as a university-preparation pathway, but no public university-destination data or DP score averages were located at the time of review.
School-reported, unverified: IB Diploma holders are stated to gain admission to Dutch and international universities; no specific destination or score data was publicly verifiable.
More Comparisons
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I choose Amity International School Amsterdam or DENISE?
Amity International School Amsterdam is best for: Internationally mobile families wanting an uninterrupted IB pathway from age 3 to 18. DENISE is best for: Internationally mobile families wanting an IB Diploma without private-school fees. The right choice depends on target curriculum, budget, and family priorities — the two are not linearly comparable.
How do fees compare between Amity International School Amsterdam and DENISE?
Amity International School Amsterdam: EUR 20,950-26,905/year (2026-2027). DENISE: EUR 0 (publicly funded; no tuition, 2026/2027). Verify against each school's own published fees; some figures are sourced from third-party aggregators.
What curricula do Amity International School Amsterdam and DENISE offer?
Amity International School Amsterdam: IB. DENISE: IB, National, Blended.
Do Amity International School Amsterdam or DENISE offer boarding?
Amity International School Amsterdam: day school only. DENISE: day school only.
Questions parents ask
This comparison is BrightKey's independent assessment using verifiable public data only. University-placement figures are school-reported and not independently verified. BrightKey takes no payments from schools. Our method →