The Özel Bilkent Schools enjoy an excellent reputation in Turkey and figure amongst the top foundation schools in Ankara and beyond. The schools are fee paying establishments and, therefore, attract middle to high socio-economic status children. They are authorized International Baccalaureate (IB) World Continuum Schools, one of an small elite group of such schools in Turkey delivering International Baccalaureate programmes from Pre-K to Grade 12.
The schools currently have around 800 pupils in primary (Pre-K to Grade 4) and middle schools (Grade 5 to 8), and 300 in the high school (9-12), and are committed to developing the attributes of the IB Learner Profile.
Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten, part of the Primary School, are the levels at which most students enter the schools, but entry is also possible at other levels in the primary, middle and high schools, depending on availability of space and meeting entrance requirements based on assessment criteria appropriate for the desired level of entry. The schools aspire to provide an education which recognizes the uniqueness of each pupil and is set on helping each student add as much value, both personally and academically, during their time as members of the school community.
The High School operates a scholarship policy which allows academically strong students from outside the institution an opportunity to join the school in Grade 9, based on the results in a scholarship exam, and benefit from a full or partial scholarship programme. The top twenty graduating students from the primary school automatically get full or partial scholarships.
The Primary School was accepted as an IB PYP candidate school from January 2009 and has developed a full Program of Inquiry (PoI) which it implements from Pre-K to Grade 4. The school is a leader in its approach to integrating the national primary curriculum into the PYP Program of Inquiry. The school received a PYP authorization visit in November 2012 and subsequently became an IB World School.
The Middle School was authorized to deliver the IB Middle Years Programme in 2018. The IB Middle Years programme is a 5 year programme delivered in Grades 5-10, with Grade 5 being a transition year. The final two years are delivered in the High School. This authorization created an IB Continuum World School in which IB programmes are taught all through education in the Özel Bilkent Schools.
The High School was authorized as an IB World School in November 2008 and graduated its first cohort of IB Diploma students in June 2011. The IB Diploma is run alongside the program for students following the Turkish Ministry of Education curriculum, focusing on the integration of teaching approaches within the school, with the IB educational philosophy informing the general educational approach, and students from both programmes working and studying together as appropriate. The High School runs the MYP (Years 5 and 6) in Grades 9 and 10.
This is an exciting time in the history of the Özel Bilkent Primary, Middle and High Schools with many opportunities provided for professional development and a rethinking of educational understandings. There is a stronger than ever desire to be a model school focused on the future, with particular emphasis on global perspectives and international-mindedness.
The schools offer a substantial number of music scholarships every year, currently 100 children benefit in some measure from these scholarships. The scholarship exam is opened once a year for all students who wish to benefit from this scheme, and assessed by members of the Music Faculty of Bilkent University. Those who are successful are awarded free music lessons in the instrument of their choice.
