The Schools Index is an

annual publication Annual publications, more often simply called annuals, are periodical publications appearing regularly once per year."Annuals", in '' Encyclopedia of library and information science'' (1968), vol. 1, pp. 434–447. Although exact definitions may v ...

that lists internationally notable

private school A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a State school, public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their fina ...

s and

international school International schools are private schools that promote education in an international environment or framework. Although there is no uniform definition or criteria, international schools are usually characterised by a multinational student body an ...

s. Published by Carfax Education, it is often considered a global list of the most prestigious schools of the world. In 2025

Time Out (magazine) ''Time Out'' is a global magazine published by Time Out Group. ''Time Out'' started as a London-only publication in 1968 and has expanded its editorial recommendations to 333 cities in 59 countries worldwide. In 2012, the London edition becam ...

called the Index "one of the most respected rankings" and "a prestigious list of the very best private schools in the world". The index is intended as a resource for parents in choosing

school A school is the educational institution (and, in the case of in-person learning, the Educational architecture, building) designed to provide learning environments for the teaching of students, usually under the direction of teachers. Most co ...

s for their children. The publication includes information on each school's

curriculum In education, a curriculum (; : curriculums or curricula ) is the totality of student experiences that occur in an educational process. The term often refers specifically to a planned sequence of instruction, or to a view of the student's experi ...

and fees. It also provides logistical details such as travel time to local

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial Aviation, air transport. They usually consist of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surf ...

History

The Schools Index was started in 2020 by Carfax Education and initially contract-published by '' Spear's''. Until 2023 it was also sometimes known as the Spear's Schools Index.> In 2022, the Schools Index incorporated an assessment of how effectively schools managed the disruptions caused by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

over the previous two years.

Selection criteria

The Schools Index lists schools based on factors such as

academic performance Academic achievement or academic performance is the extent to which a student, teacher or institution has attained their short or long-term educational goals. Completion of educational benchmarks such as secondary school diplomas and bachelor's deg ...

, facilities, university preparation, and overall educational ethos. Additionally, the guide evaluates schools on their ability to prepare pupils for life beyond

academia An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

The Schools Index

The Schools Index categorizes schools by region, covering areas such as the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, the

U.S. The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...

, and other regions. For 2023, it lists the top 125 schools in these areas in its main list. A supplementary list of 25 "schools to watch" was introduced in the 2023 edition of the Index, taking the total number of schools included in the Index to 150. The Schools to Watch List is separated into four categories: Ones to Watch, Small Gems, Something Different, and New Schools.

Main List

Schools to Watch List

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Schools Index, The Indexes Education-related lists International education industry Private education Private schools Lists of schools Lists of international schools Lists of schools in Europe Lists of schools in the United Kingdom Lists of schools in North America Lists of schools in Asia Lists of schools in Africa Lists of schools in South America Lists of schools in Oceania British educational websites