Advantages and Disadvantages of Boarding
Optimal support
In class, students benefit from a good student-teacher ratio. This means small classes, individual attention, supervised study time for homework and presentations, field trips and much more. However, support is not limited to the classroom. The boarding school's many recreational activities offer children opportunities they would not have at home. From sport, music and art to experiential education, boarding school gives children the chance to try things out, learn new things and discover their interests and passions.
Community
Students spend most of their day in our community. They share rooms and wings, go to lessons together, eat together, meet for afternoon activities and so on. This creates very special friendships that often last a lifetime. They also learn to respect others, to compromise, to assert themselves and to use their strengths for the good of their community.
Independence & Responsibility
A balanced relationship between rules and freedom characterises boarding life. Where many people come together, there is a need for sensible rules that are supported by the community. This includes students taking on responsibilities for themselves and the community. Students at boarding school usually learn to organise themselves earlier than at home. For example, they do their own washing and keep their rooms and common areas tidy. They also take on tasks for the community, such as kitchen duties.
Responsibility
There are many opportunities at boarding school to take responsibility for yourself and others. Whether it is in a service group, on an expedition, in the student council or in the wider community. Mentors and House Tutors are confident in assigning tasks to students so that they can help shape our boarding school and grow with their responsibilities.
Internationality
At Salem, students become global citizens. Not only because they are confronted with different cultures on a daily basis – students from around 45 nations currently live together at Salem. But also because Salem encourages internationality. Our students can take part in exchanges, get involved in Round Square International Service Projects, or take the International Baccalaureate Diploma instead of the Abitur.
Networking
At boarding school, the community is particularly close and friendships often last a lifetime. For this reason, our former students join together in the Altsalemer Vereinigung (ASV). The ASV currently has ca. 4,000 active members and regularly organises regional meetings. The highlight, however, is the large-scale ASV Whitsun Reunion, which takes place every two years at Schule Schloss Salem, bringing together all ‘Altsalemers’.
Where there are advantages, there are also challenges. These can be very different, as everyone finds something different challenging. The most common ones are
Little privacy: You are almost never alone at boarding school. What sounds great for some can be a challenge for others. This is because there is very little privacy at boarding school. Everything is shared: the room, the bathroom, the common rooms, etc. As a result, students learn early on to recognise their own needs, to respect the needs of others and to find compromises.
Homesickness: Younger children often struggle with homesickness at the beginning. They arrive in an unfamiliar environment and are separated from their parents, perhaps for the first time. However, experience shows that this phase lasts only a short time until the castle grounds have been explored, and the first friendships have been made.
Daily Schedule
Grades 5-10
Costs vary from boarding school to boarding school and often by year group. Our boarding fees depend on the year group and the academic system. Please refer to our School and Boarding Fees for the latest information.
In addition to school and boarding fees, there may be additional costs for excursions, instrumental lessons or private tuition. You can find an example of these in our additional costs.
Salem offers two qualifications: the Abitur, taught in German, and the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IB) taught in English. The IB can be taken from Year 11. Pupils can attend our International Classes (IC) from Year 8 to prepare for the IB.
Salem can also be an interesting route to the Abitur or IB for students who have already achieved their intermediate school leaving certificate at the end of grade 10. Our grade 10PLUS builds on the intermediate school leaving certificate and provides intensive support to bring students up to course level to then go on and study for their Abitur.
In grades 5 to 10 all students wear a school uniform consisting of a polo shirt and/or sweater with the Salem emblem. There is also more formal uniform which is worn on special occasions. In the upper school, at Salem International College, uniforms are not compulsory, but students are required to follow the dress code.
On our three boarding school sites, children are housed in wings. Depending on the year group, you will live with between 13 and 23 other students. You will share a room with 1 and up to a maximum of 3 other children, depending on the year group and the style of the building/size of the room.
Yes, there are a number of scholarship schemes which enable talented children to attend boarding school regardless of their parents' income. One of the largest is offered by Schule Schloss Salem. Scholarships are offered at different levels depending on need. For higher scholarships parental income is means tested. The Dornier and Neumayer Foundations also offer boarding school scholarships at various boarding schools, including Schule Schloss Salem.
