Korea International School Jeju vs St. Johnsbury Academy Jeju
🇰🇷 Jeju · Side-by-side comparison on verifiable public data.
Neither Korea International School Jeju nor St. Johnsbury Academy Jeju 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. Both run the same curriculum (American), so the differences come down to pathway detail, campus culture, and specific language/boarding arrangements rather than the curriculum framework itself. Both are day schools with fees in the same market band — see the table below for the figures, and verify against each school's own published fees.
Key Facts
| Korea International School Jeju | St. Johnsbury Academy Jeju | |
|---|---|---|
| Curriculum | American | American |
| Ages | 4–18 | 3–18 |
| Languages of instruction | English | English |
| Annual fees | KRW 29,673,897–41,956,107 | KRW 37,595,945–41,329,058 |
| Enrollment | 1,042 | — |
| Boarding | Yes | Yes |
| Accreditations | WASC, Korean Ministry of Education | NEASC, Korean Ministry of Education |
Strengths
- ✓Full six-year WASC accreditation plus Korean Ministry of Education recognition — dual U.S./Korean diploma pathway
- ✓Broad AP offering (18 courses) including the AP Capstone program, rare in South Korea
- ✓South Korea's first international boarding school; structured residential program from Grade 6
- ✓Full K–12 continuity (JK–Grade 12, ages 4–18) on a single purpose-built JGEC campus
- ✓English-medium instruction with native English-speaking teachers plus EAL/ELL support
- ✓Full NEASC accreditation — one of only two schools in Korea (school-reported) — anchoring a rigorous, externally validated American programme
- ✓Published AP track record: self-described 'top AP school in Korea,' with 519+ AP exams and a 94.41% credit-earning rate (school-reported)
- ✓College Board member and official AP + SAT Testing Center, streamlining the US college pathway on campus
- ✓WIDA International School Consortium membership signals structured English-language-learner support
- ✓Direct curricular lineage from St. Johnsbury Academy Vermont (founded 1842), giving the young campus an established academic model
Trade-offs
- !Remote location on Jeju Island (Daejeong-eup, far from Seoul) limits access and day-student catchment
- !Very low international diversity — student body is overwhelmingly Korean nationals
- !AP exam results / college-placement outcomes are not published publicly
- !No IB or Cambridge pathway — families seeking those frameworks must look elsewhere in JGEC
- !High fees (~KRW 30M–42M/year) before boarding costs
- !Newest JGEC school (opened ~2017, unverified) — shorter independent track record and a still-maturing alumni/placement history
- !Remote location on Jeju Island, far from Seoul; practical mainly for boarders and JGEC-resident families
- !No exact founding year, enrolment, or EAL details published on the official site — transparency gaps relative to some peers
- !AP-only pathway; no IB or Cambridge option, which narrows fit for families seeking those frameworks
- !Fees are split 70% KRW / 30% USD, exposing families to currency risk; boarding meals are billed separately
Best Fit For
- • Families targeting U.S. university admission via AP
- • Boarding-seeking families in Korea
- • Students wanting a large American K–12 with strong AP breadth
- • Korean nationals wanting dual U.S./Korean diplomas
- • Families targeting US (and other AP-credit-granting) universities
- • Boarding families seeking a structured residential American school
- • Students already in or relocating to Jeju Global Education City
- • High-achievers who will leverage a deep AP catalog
University Placement
School-reported · not independently verified
School-reported, unverified: AP exam results and university-placement statistics are not published in the public sources reviewed.
School-reported, unverified: SJA Jeju publicises AP outcomes (230 students, 519+ exams, 94.41% credit-earning, 83% scoring 4–5) and states graduates target 'exclusive universities around the world,' but no independently verified matriculation list is public.
More Comparisons
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I choose Korea International School Jeju or St. Johnsbury Academy Jeju?
Korea International School Jeju is best for: Families targeting U.S. university admission via AP. St. Johnsbury Academy Jeju is best for: Families targeting US (and other AP-credit-granting) universities. The right choice depends on target curriculum, budget, and family priorities — the two are not linearly comparable.
How do fees compare between Korea International School Jeju and St. Johnsbury Academy Jeju?
Korea International School Jeju: KRW 29,673,897–41,956,107. St. Johnsbury Academy Jeju: KRW 37,595,945–41,329,058. Verify against each school's own published fees; some figures are sourced from third-party aggregators.
What curricula do Korea International School Jeju and St. Johnsbury Academy Jeju offer?
Korea International School Jeju: American. St. Johnsbury Academy Jeju: American.
Do Korea International School Jeju or St. Johnsbury Academy Jeju offer boarding?
Korea International School Jeju: offers boarding. St. Johnsbury Academy Jeju: offers boarding.
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 →