ISP vs Jeannine Manuel vs ASP: How They Compare

Comparison table

# ISP vs Jeannine Manuel vs ASP: How They Compare

Paris · Comparison

Three names come up in almost every Paris relocation conversation: the International School of Paris in the 16th, Ecole Jeannine Manuel in the 15th, and the American School of Paris out at Saint-Cloud. Families often arrive thinking they sit on the same shelf. They do not. One is a small full-continuum IB school, one is an academically selective bilingual French school with international layers, and one is the grand old American campus school for English-speaking families on assignment.

Curriculum, intensity, community and geography all pull in different directions. A family who would thrive at Jeannine Manuel might find ASP under-stretching. A family who came for ASP's campus rhythm might find ISP small and the IB-only diet narrow.

At a glance

International School of Paris sits across three buildings in the 16th arrondissement, walking distance from one another, with roughly 900 students from sixty-plus nationalities. The school has been IB-accredited since 1982 and runs the PYP, MYP and DP end to end. No French Bac, no AP, no national-system option. Antoine Delaitre is head of school. Class sizes are small and the community is genuinely transient.

Ecole Jeannine Manuel is a much larger operation, around 1,600 pupils in Paris and a sister campus in Lille and London. The Paris school sits in the 15th near La Motte-Picquet. Founded in 1954 by Jeannine Manuel as a bilingual project, it now runs the French national curriculum as the spine, with English-medium subjects layered throughout, and offers the French Baccalauréat with BFI, the IB Diploma, and IGCSE in the senior years. Eighty nationalities, semi-public status under contract with the French state, and a competitive admissions test that screens hard.

American School of Paris sits on a four-hectare campus in Saint-Cloud, west of the Périphérique, with around 760 students from prek to Grade 12. The headline curriculum is American, leading to a US high school diploma, with AP courses and IB Diploma layered into the senior years. Roughly two thirds of seniors take IB or AP. Accreditations are MSA-CESS and CIS. About 65 nationalities on the roll, with a strong tilt toward American corporate and diplomatic families.

Curriculum

ISP offers IB only. Children who join in early years move through PYP, then MYP, then DP, with no switching cost between phases because the philosophy and assessment logic are continuous. For families who already know they want an IB Diploma at 18, and who value inquiry-led primary years, the continuity is the strongest single argument for ISP. The flipside: no French Bac route for families who later decide to stay in France, no AP option for those who later head to the US, and limited curriculum diversity if a child does not respond well to inquiry-based learning.

Jeannine Manuel runs the most demanding academic programme of the three. The French Bac with BFI is a stretching diploma in its own right, and the school's IB Diploma sits alongside it as an alternative pathway in Premiere and Terminale. English is not an add-on; subjects are taught in English by native-English teachers from the early years upward. The senior school also offers IGCSE. The pace is fast, the homework load real, and the cultural expectation French rather than American.

ASP sits between. The default route is the US high school diploma, with course rigour rising through Honors and AP. The IB Diploma is available for students who want the international option, and it has been running for over thirty years. AP pass rate at 3+ is 86%. French is taught daily through primary and middle school, but the medium of instruction is English and the rhythm is American: yearbook, Spirit Week, US-style sports calendar, varsity letters.

Results

Jeannine Manuel posted an IB average of 38.1 in 2025 and has ranked first among French lycées for ten consecutive years. That is the highest published IB average of the three by a clear margin, and it sits on top of a French Bac cohort that performs at the top end nationally.

ASP reports a 100% IB Diploma pass rate with an average of 34.6, plus an AP pass rate of 86% at 3+. Strong by world average benchmarks, and the AP-IB combination gives families flexibility around US, UK and continental applications.

ISP reports a 2025 IB Diploma average of 32 points, with pass rates of 92% in 2024 and 90% in 2023. Above world average but below the other two on these specific metrics. The school's framing is that the IB continuum from PYP shapes the whole-school experience rather than the DP score alone, which is a fair reading, though families comparing raw outputs should see the numbers as they are.

Fees and what they include

Jeannine Manuel is the outlier on price. Fees start near EUR 10,260 and reach roughly EUR 32,560 at the top of the school. The lower end reflects the school's semi-public status under contract with the French state, which subsidises teacher salaries for the French national curriculum portion. There is no cheaper way to access top-tier bilingual academic results in Paris.

ISP runs roughly EUR 25,500 to EUR 39,000 across the age range. Small classes, three IB programmes, and central-Paris real estate sit behind that number.

ASP runs EUR 25,000 to EUR 41,400, similar overall to ISP but with the campus footprint, sports facilities and PreK provision baked in. ASP families generally also factor in the bus network running across Paris and the western suburbs, which is non-trivial for a Saint-Cloud campus.

All three publish fee schedules with registration, capital levies and lunch on top of tuition. The headline numbers above are core tuition only.

Community and feel

ISP feels small and transient. Families cycle through on three to five year postings. Pastoral access is high, teachers know children by name, and the community is genuinely international rather than dominated by one nationality. The grumble that surfaces is consistency between the polish of the marketing and the day-to-day texture, particularly at handover points.

Jeannine Manuel is French in temperament, even though the working language is bilingual. Discipline tighter, homework heavier, parent involvement more discreet. Eighty nationalities sit on the roll, but the cultural baseline is the French academic tradition. Families coming from US or UK independents sometimes find the formality a shock for the first year.

ASP is the warmest landing pad of the three for English-speaking families new to Paris. The Parent Faculty Association is active, the campus feel is a familiar American school template, and the community is plug-in-ready. Some families coming from US East Coast independents find the academic ceiling lower than expected. Others say the social and pastoral experience compensates and that selective US universities still come through.

Admissions

Jeannine Manuel is selective. The school administers an entrance test and assesses for academic potential as well as English level. A child who needs slow time, or whose French is at zero in mid-school years, may not be a fit, and the school will be candid about that. Demand consistently exceeds supply at junior intake points.

ISP is mission-led. The school looks for families who fit the IB philosophy and the international community, with reasonable academic readiness. Capacity varies by year group, and language support is available in the early years. Decisions tend to be made on fit rather than test scores.

ASP has capacity constraints in senior school in particular, with waitlists tightening around Grade 9 to 11. Earlier years move more flexibly. The school is set up to onboard relocating American families at speed, including mid-year arrivals.

How to read the comparison

If a family wants the full IB continuum from age 3 to 18 in central Paris and values the inquiry-based primary years, ISP is the only school in France that offers it.

If a family wants top-tier bilingual academics and is comfortable with selective admissions and a French-rhythm school, Jeannine Manuel sits at the top of the city on results, and the lower fee band is a real consideration.

If a family wants an American campus rhythm with US-style sports, English-medium instruction, AP and IB Diploma, and a soft landing for a corporate or diplomatic relocation, ASP is the established choice.

A child who flourishes in one of these three will not necessarily flourish in the other two. Curriculum, intensity and community pull in different directions, and that is the variable that matters more than the headline score.

FAQs

Which school has the strongest IB results? Jeannine Manuel, at a 38.1 average in 2025. ASP follows at 34.6 with a 100% pass rate. ISP sits at 32 points.

Which is the most affordable? Jeannine Manuel by some distance, with fees starting near EUR 10,260 thanks to its semi-public status. ISP and ASP cluster in the EUR 25,000 to EUR 41,400 band.

Can a child without French enter Jeannine Manuel? The school screens for academic potential and language readiness. Entry in early years is most accessible. Mid-school entries with zero French are difficult.

Which school suits American families on a short posting? ASP is the natural fit on community, calendar, and US university pathway. ISP works for families wanting a fully international cohort rather than an American-majority one.

Where do graduates go? All three send graduates to selective US, UK and French universities. Jeannine Manuel has the strongest French and UK university footprint at the top end. ASP and ISP both publish destination lists with US selective universities well represented.

Is one school better for younger children? ISP and ASP both run from age 3, with structured early years. Jeannine Manuel starts from age 6. For PreK and reception ages, the choice narrows to ISP or ASP.