Yeshiva College

Melbourne School Institutes ‘Capped Fee’ Tuition

The administrators of Yeshivah College-Beth Rivkah, the Chabad boys’ and girls’ schools in Melbourne, which together boast over 1,300 students, have announced the implementation of a ‘capped-fee’ system, ensuring that no family pays more than 8-18% of their income in tuition, no matter how many children they have enrolled at the schools.

In a statement released by the schools’ administrators, the new tuition regimen is explained:

Private education has become cost prohibitive to many parents especially those with 2 or more children at school.   Yeshivah Beth Rivkah Colleges (YBR), one of Victoria’s most academically successful schools, with quality Jewish and General education and outstanding VCE and NAPLAN results, has developed an innovative capped fee scheme.  This scheme recognises the current financial pressures on families trying to provide their children with an excellent Jewish education.

With current enrolments of over 1,300 students and growing, YBR delivers a comprehensive educational programme designed to empower students with the necessary academic and life skills to achieve success in contemporary society.

Rabbi Smukler, Principal of YBR says; “Our unique CAPS programme will give eligible parents certainty about the maximum annual school fees they will pay for all their school age children at YBR based on a percentage of their total Household Income.  For example, a family with a total household income of $130,000 per annum will be charged 10% of their income in fees being $13,000 per annum, regardless of how many children they enrol in the school. The balance of the fees will be written off with the exception of some charges and levies, which relate specifically to the child’s enrolment such as subject and security levies and camp fees.

“Dependent upon their income, eligible parents will pay between 8-18% of their total annual household income in school fees for all their children in school and importantly, YBR guarantees not to increase the proportion of income new parents need pay for six years unless the parent’s financial circumstances change.

“At YBR we have long been concerned that private education has not been readily affordable.  It is our strong belief that every Jewish child deserves to have a Jewish education therefore we were determined not to let the cost of learning stand in the way of providing that strong educational foundation for all Jewish children.

“We were also determined to enhance the dignity of those requiring fee remissions and remove the associated stigma for families needing financial assistance by having a simple and transparent online application process.

“YBR are committed to providing quality education where children feel proud of their Jewish identity. We cater for the individual and for children from a wide range of backgrounds.  Our philosophy is to engender Jewish and Australian values imbued with the inclusive Chabad philosophy – qualities of caring for others, compassion, self-motivation and an appreciation for Jewish life.  YBR provides a nurturing environment with happy kids who are truly loved and cared for by their teachers. Emphasis is placed on the entire spectrum of personal development – mental, emotional, spiritual, academic, social and physical.

“Determining if the CAPS scheme works for you involves a simple, non-intrusive and quick process.  Prospective parents can work out their indicative fee level on an anonymous ground-breaking online tool found at www.ybrcaps.com or make an appointment with the school admissions officer.”

18 Comments

  • this is just a third

    this is just a third of the tuition obligations for the family – add to it the school for boys, a couple of kids in yeshiva, and possibly some camps, and soon enough you’ll find yourself working mostly to pay the tuitions.

    It would be nice if at least the kids were getting decent education for all this money.

    Anyway, good for them – I’d take that deal anytime. Wish that others would take the same approach, especially the yeshivos. In our place, kindergarten costs almost the same as yeshiva – $11-13,000 a year (or whatever part of it that it’s open).

    • Holding the applause

      The Australian Govt. gives private schools millions of dollars. Students who don’t go to public schools get a chunk of tuition from the govt.. Whatever tuition is coming from the parents is over and above. YBR are one of the biggest Jewish school beneficiaries of federal dollars. You cannot compare the tuition ‘crisis’ in the US to there.
      I would be curious to know how many parents will actually be affected by this.

  • Amazing

    These are excellent schools, with an extremely high standard of education (kids graduate high school with more skills and knowledge than most US kids have after college). So glad to see them tackling the tuition challenge. I wish lots of success!

  • Thank you nechama bendet

    Thank you for spearheading, developing and following through on the special caps tuition program.

  • wow

    that means for my 8 children who are in school (until 12th grade) I would be paying $1,000 a month!
    Now I pay $3,400! (or they want me to, can’t afford it)

  • Grateful

    As a mother of several children in YBR and member of the community, I would like to thank the Yeshivah administration for making top-notch schooling so affordable.
    Even though the CAPS programme is a new initiative, YBR has always been very reasonable with assessing school fees, looking out for our financial interests as well, instead of just trying to squeeze us to the bone purely because they could.

  • mendel engel

    That is amazing. Something like that should be down in crown heights as well. I hope some people with real money will take a lesson and help out our community

  • hmmm

    i tried the anonymous calculator and then asks you your name,contact the office (where is the anonymity?)

    • Anonymous

      I had a look at the FAQ on their website http://www.ybrcaps.com and found this:

      “Is the CAPS calculator anonymous?
      …is completely anonymous and used solely for the purpose of providing you with an indicative CAPS fee. YBR do not know who fills it in, nor is that information stored in any way.”
      The contact us section is not connected to the school fee calculator, it is stand alone and doesn’t save the information from the school fee section. The information you enter in the calculator does not get stored anywhere.

  • some people are never satisfied!

    Kol Hakovod to the school & I wish you lots of luck with all the miserable parents who will still complain.

  • Wolfy

    Good for them, but Australia subsidizes yeshivas with real money. Here, we get free lunch for the poor and some textbooks and buses if we’re lucky. That’s about it. No $ to pay the teachers, which is over 2/3 of any yeshiva’s budget.

  • What about the students from NY?

    It would be nice if they extended it to the parents of talmidim coming from overseas. YG costs $15,000 plus a long list of fees…and you even have to bring your own negel vasser shissel!!!
    It is a wonderful yeshiva, but between tuition, tickets, and misc fees ($500 AU visa) it is more expensive than the girls’ seminaries in Israel.