Gyeongnam International Foreign School

GIFS opened its doors in 2004 with sixteen students and now welcomes an average of one hundred students per year. It was first accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) in the year 2007 and continues as a fully accredited international school. The school is located in Sacheon city in Gyeongsangnam-do province, a coastal area on the south central tip of South Korea.

GIFS enrollment has historically been dependent on the number and type of businesses and projects in the Sacheon, Jinju, and Geoje areas. We also welcome students from our local Korean community as we serve students and families who have traveled abroad and have English speaking children. We are anticipating and planning for growth.

GIFS is a truly international school made up of students and staff from around the globe. At any given time, it is normal for us to serve as many as twenty-five nationalities among our student population. The GIFS faculty and support staff is also a diverse one made up of many nationalities, ages, genders, and religious affiliations. Currently, the administrative and teaching faculty includes American, Canadian, Filipino, South African, British, Turkish, Indian and Korean staff. The custodial and support staff is Korean.

One of our greatest achievements is our authorization as a full IB Continuum School PYP-MYP-DP. These are prestigious internationally recognized educational programs that expect much from the students and teachers involved in them. We look forward to many more years of outstanding individual and collective achievement by our students, families, and staff.

GIFS students transition through the Primary Years Program (PYP), the Middle Years Program (MYP) and the Diploma Program (DP) with a commitment to, and a say so in, their education. Furthermore the three-program IB Continuum provides GIFS students with a consistent, coherent teaching and learning journey. At GIFS, students unlock their potential to become knowledgeable, ethical, global citizens in the future. We intentionally foster an environment that sends our graduates into the world with critical thinking capabilities, problem solving skills, empathy, and the tools they need to become successful.

An education is not complete without student investigation of interests outside the classroom. GIFS provides comprehensive after-school activity choices that accentuate our IB programs. Our exciting, diverse after-school activity program provides opportunities for students to explore enriching activities in a stimulating, safe environment with our caring teaching staff promoting an internationally-minded perspective.