education
AMPLA EDUCATION
W
hich school is the best fit?
How and when do you
need to apply? Will your
child even get in? There’s
a lot to think about when it comes
to applying for secondary school—
especially if you are looking at boarding
schools overseas. Ampla Education,
founded three years ago by Julianna
Yau, can help steer families through the
process. The company name is derived
from the Latin word Ampla, meaning
“great opportunity,” and that’s the perfect
name for a company that “aims to guide
students along the path to discovering
great opportunities in education.” Ideally,
parents looking to send their children
overseas for secondary school would
contact Ampla two or three years in
advance (although the company can also
help with last minute applications).
Prior to founding Ampla, Julianna
offered admission counselling with
another company but found it
impersonal. “Each family is different; at
Ampla we customise for each family,
which can benefit them more. We
discuss which schools would be a
good fit based on curriculum, culture
and individual merits.” Customised
is the keyword. Ampla’s aim is to
make sure that families have realistic
expectations—that the child applies to
a school that is a good match in the
first place. It’s all very well discussing
your child with an advisor, who says
“why Madam, your son is clearly a
good fit for Eton,” when they’ve never
met him or seen a school report. Surely
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every parent talks up the positive in
their child? At Ampla “school selections
are made strategically to maximise the
chance of success,” explains Julianna.
There are different levels of
assistance available, including a variety
of comprehensive packages that enable
Ampla to tailor their service to the
family’s needs, thereby really amplifying
the students’ potential. Ampla also
offers a unique mentorship opportunity,
pairing applicants with a graduate of
the school of choice (or the same type
of school) to help in the process. The
Ampla Boarding School Package—
which is available in four levels: basic,
professional, premium and exclusive
—starts with a meeting to understand
the profile of the student and the
family’s preferences. The child is also
involved in this meeting, unless they are
too young in which case the meeting
takes place as early as possible.
An experienced consultant, such
as Julianna, identifies the individual
strengths and needs of the student in
order to devise a customised strategy.
A key factor in the selection and
application process for boarding school
is Mock tests which help to indicate the
academic level of the child. Report cards
and a ‘CV’ detailing the child’s activities
are also important in helping the
consultant provide an initial school list for
each child. “We discuss the list with the
parents and the student. If it’s a good fit
for them, we provide more information
about the schools, if it’s not we can
keep revising it until they are happy with
the list,” explains Julianna. Then the
application process begins followed by
the official pre-tests, for which Ampla
can provide tutorial lessons.
Part of the Ampla process often
involves a mentor. “We pair [students]
with a mentor from either the UK or US,
depending on where they want to go to
school, and what kind of schools they
are interested in. For example, if they
want to go to a boarding school we
might match them with a mentor from
that particular school or type of school
so that they can ask more questions.”
Mentors are also matched by subject
and interests. Mentors, based in the
UK and US, have already graduated
through the school of choice, which
is something quite different from
what other companies offer. “Usually
companies have consultants that are
based in Hong Kong, they might not
have studied abroad or in that country
or school,” explains Julianna, “You
wouldn’t be able to get as much insight
from them.”
Interaction with mentors is usually
through Skype or other online means
or, if the family are visiting the country,
we can arrange for them to meet up.
According to Ampla counsellor Patrick
Jiang, a graduate of Phillips Academy;
Massachusetts Institute of Technology;
Boston University, and University
College London, “There is perhaps a
simple reason why mentorship is such
an effective preparation for boarding
school, and it is because boarding
school education seeks precisely to