YCIS superintendent Tom Ulmet accepts Award for Excellence in Education. Photo provided to China Daily

Yew Chung International Schools (YCIS) has earned a top honour from University of Cambridge International Examinations (CIE). YCIS was presented with the “Cambridge Award for Excellence in Education” today in recognition of their longstanding commitment to providing a world-class, global education. Notably, they are the first and only school in China to receive this award. The success of the YCIS programme is reflected by their students’ results, including:

Cambridge Top in the World IGCSE Awards

Top in China IGCSE Awards

High Achievement in IGCSE Awards

Best Across IGCSE Awards

Achievement of the highest percentages in A* - A across a wide range of subjects in the June 2011 examination series.

These awards are some of the most recent examples of the history of excellence at YCIS.

“This is a great honour for our Students, Staff, Administrators and Directorate who have all worked very hard to achieve excellence within the IGCSE curriculum established by CIE,” said Mr. Tom Ulmet, Superintendent for Yew Chung International Schools in China, who accepted the award on behalf of the Schools and the Director, Dr Betty Chan. “Special certificates have been given for the past three years as a new type of regional honor by CIE. YCIS Shanghai and YCIS Beijing were joined last year by YCIS Chongqing and YCIS Qingdao in having Top of China (ToC) and/or Top of World (ToW) examination results. This year CIE are recognizing the bigger picture of performance outcomes, and YCIS China has certainly earned its place by having more ToC and ToW Awards than any other single group of schools in China. This is certainly an exceptional, newsworthy and outstanding result.”

All students in Years 10 and 11 (Key Stage 4) embark upon a two-year programme of study leading to the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) examinations. These examinations form a bridge between Key Stage 3 and the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme in Key Stage 5. During the IGCSE years, the students’ particular interests and strengths are focused across a variety of subjects, including the core subjects of English Language and Literature, Chinese Language, Mathematics and Science, and are complimented by optional subjects that range from Art and Design to History to Business Studies, and more. The examinations are taken at the end of Year 11.

Attending the afternoon ceremony were YCIS Administrators and Division Heads, and CIE representatives, including Ms. Ann Puntis, CIE CEO, Ms. Janet Morris, CIE Director of Communications and Customer Relationships, Dr. Ben Schmidt, CIE Regional Director Asia Pacific, Ms. Stella Jiang, CIE Senior Schools Development Manager for China and Ms. Lina Li, CIE Schools Development Manager for China.

University of Cambridge International Examinations is the global leader in international standard qualifications for 5–19 year olds, and its IGCSE results are recognised by educational institutions, universities and employers worldwide.

The YCIS Network of schools includes campuses in Shanghai, Beijing, Qingdao and Chongqing, China, as well as Hong Kong and Silicon Valley, US. The School is a unique learning environment and provides a bilingual programme that emphasizes both English and Chinese Language and culture. YCIS Shanghai serves over 2300 students from 52 countries and regions, and students graduate to some of the most prestigious universities around the world.