"Bavarian International School gAG (BIS) is an English-language international school offering the full continuum of International Baccalaureate programmes to students aged 3 to 18 across two campuses in the greater Munich area."
Founded in 1995 and operated as a non-profit association, BIS was established with internationally mobile families firmly in mind, providing an educational pathway that travels with children wherever their family's journey may take them next. That founding purpose remains central to the school's identity today. The school's academic programme is built entirely around the IB framework, spanning all four IB programmes: the Primary Years Programme (PYP), the Middle Years Programme (MYP), the Diploma Programme (DP), and the Career-related Programme (CP). This seamless progression from pre-kindergarten through Grade 12 means that families arriving with a toddler and staying through secondary school will find a consistent, coherent educational philosophy at every stage. The IB's internationally recognised qualifications are particularly well suited to the school's core community of globally mobile professionals, whose children may move between schools and countries multiple times throughout their education. BIS draws its student body from a remarkably diverse international community, currently enrolling approximately 1,200 students from more than 52 countries who collectively speak over 70 languages. This extraordinary linguistic and cultural richness is not merely a backdrop but a living part of daily school life. While English serves as the primary language of instruction, German and other languages are also part of the learning environment, reflecting both the school's location in Bavaria and its commitment to nurturing genuinely multilingual students. For families concerned about language development — whether maintaining a home language, acquiring German, or strengthening English — BIS offers a multilingual context that few schools can match. The school operates across two campuses. Its main campus is located in Haimhausen, a quiet municipality in the Dachau district just north of Munich, offering the kind of spacious setting that suits a full pre-K through Grade 12 school community. A second campus, opened in 2016, is situated in Munich-Schwabing on Leopoldstraße, serving primary-age students in one of Munich's most vibrant and well-connected neighbourhoods. Together, the two campuses give families flexibility in where they live within the broader Munich region while remaining part of a single, unified school community. What distinguishes BIS most clearly is the deliberate alignment between its design and the realities of expatriate family life. The school was built from the outset to serve internationally mobile management families, and that focus has shaped everything from its curriculum choices to its admissions approach and community culture. Parents relocating to Munich for professional assignments can expect to find a school where transitions are understood, where diversity is the norm rather than the exception, and where a child's education is structured to be genuinely portable. For expat families and relocating professionals evaluating schools in the Munich area, Bavarian International School offers a well-established, thoughtfully constructed environment where children from around the world find both academic rigour and a true sense of belonging.