With the cost of education on the rise, I’m glad the urge to procreate never kicked in for me.

For those of you with young kids, however, there are two options. If you’re Elon Musk, you can start your own private school.

For everyone else, start saving, because you’re going to have to fork out a wad of cash for their education.

Hilton takes first prize for the traditional school with the highest fees in South Africa. If your kid gets in, be ready to drop R276 560 a year.

If you find that fee panic-inducing, here’s a look at the non-traditional school that knocks Hilton off the leaderboard, with a yearly fee of $30 900 (around R411 400).

The African Leadership Academy (ALA) offers a two-year pre-university programme for 16 to 19-year-olds.

It’s located in Honeydew, just outside Jozi, and unlike other SA schools, it doesn’t offer a National Senior Certificate or IEB equivalent.

Rather, BusinessTech reports, the school offers a:

…unique curriculum for candidates who show strong academic performance, leadership potential, entrepreneurial spirit and a “passion” and commitment to Africa.

Students who make it through the strict admissions process will study the core offering of English, Mathematics, Entrepreneurial Leadership, African Studies and Writing and Rhetoric, along with a combination of Cambridge-administered IGCSE, AS or A2 electives that can include courses from the Natural Sciences, the Humanities and Languages and Commerce.

Because prospective candidates have to be between the ages of 16 and 19, the entry requirements are strict, and strong academic performance in all subjects at the schools attended before applying for the ALA is a prerequisite.

Students at ALA are examined with the Cambridge International Examinations, more commonly known as A-levels. Out of thousands of applicants, only 120 make the cut. ALA points out that:

 It does not discriminate on the basis of gender (identity or expression), race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, nationality, ethnicity (or tribal affiliation), wealth or income when selecting successful candidates.

Who’s keen for a video tour?

That’s all good and well, but you have to be pretty wealthy to go there.

The school has a fixed, all-inclusive fee, set at $30,900 per year. At current rates, that translates to about R411,400 – slightly lower than the cost in 2017, due to a more favourable exchange rate.

Even though ALA’s prices have not changed since 2017, it still remains the most expensive schooling option, when compared to the likes of Hilton College and Michaelhouse in the KZN Midlands.

ALA is approximately 50% more expensive than Hilton, which often carries the title of the most expensive ‘traditional’ school in the country – however this gap is narrowing, as private schools in South Africa experience fee increases as high as 10%, while the ALA has kept its fees stable.

And new parents better keep an eye on the fees, which are only getting higher as the years go by. 

Looks like you can put a price on good education, and it’s set to cause a lot of sleepless nights for parents.

I remain blissfully childless and well rested.

[source:businesstech]