Information for Prospective International Students
Information about how you can attend Victoria School of the Arts as an International Student can be found at the Edmonton Public Schools website: http://internationalprograms.epsb.ca
At Victoria School of the Arts, the academic school year is comprised of two semesters; the first semester is from September to the end of January and the second semester is from February to the end of June. During this period students are enrolled in full-time academic and arts courses, including dance, music, theatre, media and visual arts. The International Baccalaureate Programme (IB) is also available for international students at no extra charge.
There are many schools for you to choose to attend in Edmonton, however, we assume that students choose to attend Victoria School because they have an interest and aptitude in the arts and that they want to pursue their passion in one or a few of the arts courses we offer. In order to best experience what Victoria School is all about, we recommend that students commit to a full year of study. If they can only come for one semester, we strongly recommend that they register for Semester 1 (September to January). Although we will gladly accept a student who registers for second semester (February - June) there are fewer opportunities for students to get involved, especially in after-school arts activities, as these groups are established in September through an audition process. It has been our experience that International Students who begin second semester have a more difficult time adjusting as performance groups are well underway and the rhythm of the year comes to a peak and then winds down.
Students attending Victoria School of the Arts for the entire year will generally choose 8 classes (4 each term). Please note that while the majority of our classes are semestered our IB classes are full year.
Students are placed in both academic and arts classes based on many factors; their past experience, current ability and the availability of classes. Please note that course choices are limited to what the timetable offers. If a student is only coming for one semester, we strongly urge them to register in as many arts classes as we can fit into their timetable.
Students attending Victoria School of the Arts not only have classes scheduled during the regular part of the day but may also choose to be involved in some of our after-school opportunities. Please note that many of these classes are auditioned. Auditions for our after school activities occur in September. Details about specific times, dates and requirement are made available to the students at the beginning of September. As well, many of our after school performance groups recommend that students also be registered in the co-requisite course associated with that art form. There are always exceptions and prerequisites can be waived if deemed beneficial to the student. If a student comes mid-way through the year and has missed September auditions and is registered in a co-requisite course, a teacher may invite them to audition for a specific group. We try our best to find ways in which new students can be included, however, for artistic reasons; there may be times when students cannot be accepted mid-year because the balance of the ensemble has already been established. This may include not only instrumental, choral and theatrical ensembles, but athletics as well.
* Please note that dance students who take a full complement of dance courses and want to participate in Leaps and Bound, our annual Dance showcase, should be willing to commit to staying from September through to the end of February.
We want to make sure that all of our international students understand our audition policies and procedures and that they are placed correctly in all of their classes. We don't want them to feel overwhelmed by being placed in classes where they have not yet covered material, and at the same time do not want them to be bored by placing them in a class where they have already mastered the material. Every student is treated as an individual and we work hard to make sure that we fulfill as many of their requests as we can. Our ultimate goal is to ensure that students have a worthwhile experience while attending Victoria School of the Arts and ultimately enjoy their time in Edmonton. The International Students that have attended Victoria School in the past have been welcome additions to our student community and have indicated that they thoroughly enjoyed their experience.
School is just one aspect of a student’s life at Victoria School. It is also extremely important the International Student recognize that they will be responsible for finding out about opportunities for activities after school hours not sponsored by the school on their own or through their host parents.
Should you have additional inquiries please do not hesitate to contact us at http://internationalprograms.epsb.ca