La Garenne International School

La Garenne International School has been one of the world’s leading boarding schools since its foundation in 1947. Today, La Garenne is home to around 200 students from all over the world.

Our campus in Villars provides a secure environment and an extraordinary education to boarding and day students from 4 to 18 years old. Our philosophy is based on providing individual attention to every student, encouraging a passion for learning, developing international mindedness, and ensuring the holistic development of all the young people in our care academically, socially, and emotionally.

We pride ourselves on our long and rich history as a bilingual place of learning. While the main teaching language is English, students are encouraged to develop a mastery of the French language in addition to studying their mother tongue. In the Primary School (ages 4-10), students follow the International Primary Curriculum, before entering our Secondary School to study the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme (ages 11 - 16). Our students spend a further two years studying for the IB Diploma or High School Diploma. Our graduates have been accepted at prestigious universities in the UK, the USA, and Europe. In addition to our School Year programme, students can also join our 'Integration Programme'. This offers them a unique taste of academic and boarding life over a shorter period before they join us for a full academic year. In summer, we offer residential and day camps consisting of language courses in French or English in the morning (from beginner to advanced level) followed by sports, cultural, and leisure activities in the afternoon. In winter, our popular Winter Camp gives students the chance to combine snowsports (ski or snowboard) with academic lessons, or to spend all day on the ski slopes refining their techniques.

Whether during the School Year or during our Summer and Winter Camps, we provide wonderful opportunities (languages, challenges, expeditions, charity projects, and school trips around the world) that stimulate young people's natural curiosity and teach them valuable life skills. We are fully accredited by CIS (Council of International Schools) and NEASC (New England Association of Schools and Colleges). We are an IB World School (accredited by the International Baccalaureate organisation), a Cambridge English, and a DELF French Preparation Centre. Our motto “Be Happy and Never, Never, Never Give Up” encourages wellbeing, effort and resilience in all aspects of life and for all members of the school community.