Colegio Visconde de Porto Seguro

In Brief

Porto Seguro is the school for families seeking a German education in Brazil, or for locally-based families who want the German Abitur and the academic pathway it opens in Europe. The size and the February school calendar make it a different kind of commitment from the English-medium market.

Founded in 1878, Porto Seguro is the oldest and largest German school in South America. It operates across two main campuses - Morumbi with around 2,887 students and Panamby with around 1,700 - and has been shaped by more than a century of cooperation between the Brazilian German community and the German government. The school holds the Exzellente Deutsche Auslandsschule designation and runs the full International German Curriculum, leading to the Abitur through an agreement with the German government. The 2025 Abitur average was 2.07 - a solid result on a scale where 1.0 is the top.

For 2026, Panamby adds an IB Diploma Programme to its offer, making Porto Seguro the first of the city's German schools to run both Abitur and IB tracks. That is a meaningful development for families who want German immersion but are uncertain whether their child will pursue university in Germany. The Morumbi campus draws around 826 university approvals in 2025, with 207 international placements including DAAD scholarship winners - a real indicator of the school's German university pipeline.

The school year runs February to December, which is out of step with the August starts at Graded, Beacon, St Francis, and St Nicholas. That calendar alignment matters more than families sometimes realise - mid-year arrivals can face social disruption. Fees are not publicly listed; given the size and the German community focus, the school operates on a direct admissions model and requires an in-person visit to discuss costs.