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St. Mary's International School vs Tokyo International School

🇯🇵 Tokyo · Side-by-side comparison on verifiable public data.

Neither St. Mary's International School nor Tokyo International School 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 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

St. Mary's International SchoolTokyo International School
CurriculumIB / AmericanIB
Ages5–184–17
Languages of instructionEnglishEnglish
Annual feesJPY 3,060,000–3,250,000JPY 3,300,000–3,600,000
Enrollment1,000470
BoardingDay onlyDay only
AccreditationsCIS, WASCCIS, NEASC

Strengths

St. Mary's International School
  • Dual CIS + WASC accreditation — exceptional accreditation depth for a Japan-based school
  • Full K–12 continuity (ages ~5–18) on a single 9-acre campus, with IB DP capstone
  • 70-year-old established institution with a clear, stable Catholic mission
  • Strongly international student body (~1,000 boys, ~60 nationalities)
  • Published, transparent IB DP subject offering (all six groups + TOK/CAS/EE)
Tokyo International School
  • Dual international accreditation (CIS since 2004 + NEASC) — strong governance and quality assurance
  • Authorized IB continuum across primary and middle years (PYP since 2005, MYP since 2007)
  • Genuinely small scale (~470 students, max class size 22) supporting individualized attention
  • Well-documented EAL programme — strong fit for families whose children are still developing English
  • Highly international community (70+ nationalities) and a tech-forward identity (Apple Distinguished School)

Trade-offs

St. Mary's International School
  • !No published academic outcomes — IB average, pass rate and university destinations all not public
  • !EAL/ESL support is not described anywhere public; English-language-learner provision is unverifiable
  • !AP is sometimes assumed but is NOT publicly evidenced — only the IB DP is confirmed
  • !Official tuition figures could not be confirmed on the school's own fees page (third-party only)
  • !The school's Wikipedia entry references 2014 historical abuse allegations — a matter of public record families may wish to research independently
Tokyo International School
  • !DP is only at candidate stage, not authorized — TIS cannot yet be relied upon as a full IB Diploma school
  • !The upper school is brand new (Grade 11 only since 2025) — no published graduation/placement track record exists
  • !No public academic results — no IB scores or university-destination data
  • !Official materials contain internal inconsistencies on grade range (K-8 vs K-11 vs K-12)
  • !Premium fees with a recent sharp increase, against an as-yet-unproven senior school

Best Fit For

St. Mary's International School
  • Families specifically seeking a single-sex, all-boys environment
  • Families wanting a Catholic / faith-based education within an international setting
  • Families prioritising accreditation rigour (CIS + WASC) as a quality signal
  • Long-stay expat or local families wanting K–12 continuity in one institution
Tokyo International School
  • Families with primary or middle-school-age children seeking an established, accredited IB PYP/MYP programme
  • Internationally mobile or non-native-English families needing strong EAL support
  • Families wanting a small, tech-integrated school in central Tokyo

University Placement

School-reported · not independently verified

St. Mary's International School

Not public. No university destinations, placement statistics, or matriculation lists are published, though the school maintains a University Counseling function.

Tokyo International School

Not public. As the upper school (G11/G12) and DP are newly established, no graduating-cohort outcomes exist yet.

Frequently Asked Questions

Should I choose St. Mary's International School or Tokyo International School?

St. Mary's International School is best for: Families specifically seeking a single-sex, all-boys environment. Tokyo International School is best for: Families with primary or middle-school-age children seeking an established, accredited IB PYP/MYP programme. The right choice depends on target curriculum, budget, and family priorities — the two are not linearly comparable.

How do fees compare between St. Mary's International School and Tokyo International School?

St. Mary's International School: JPY 3,060,000–3,250,000. Tokyo International School: JPY 3,300,000–3,600,000. Verify against each school's own published fees; some figures are sourced from third-party aggregators.

What curricula do St. Mary's International School and Tokyo International School offer?

St. Mary's International School: IB, American. Tokyo International School: IB.

Do St. Mary's International School or Tokyo International School offer boarding?

St. Mary's International School: day school only. Tokyo International School: day school only.

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 →