As hundreds of kindergarten and lower primary Indian students get set to begin their first year in school next month, many expatriates in Jeddah are in a dilemma as their children were unlucky in not figuring in the draw held by the Indian International School-Jeddah (IISJ).

Hundreds of parents whose children failed to find a place in the school returned home disappointed on Saturday after participating in the draw.

Though there are private schools operating in the city, the community-run IISJ, the oldest and first Indian school in Jeddah, remains the first preference for many parents both in terms of academic excellence as well as affordability.

Considering the high demand for admission and the limited number of seats in the school, the system of allotting seats through draw of lots was introduced by the school authorities to maintain transparency.



The draw was held in the presence of Indian diplomat Mohammed Raghib Qureshi.

According to the school authorities, it had received 5,602 applications for admission into various classes, including 1,538 for lower kindergarten (LKG) against the available 700 seats.

Fifty percent of the seats are reserved for applicants whose siblings are currently studying in the school and the remaining 50 percent are for those who do not have any siblings studying in the school.

There are only 30 seats available in the first grade for fresh candidates who have no siblings studying in the school.