The American Academy in Zagreb is a modern high school that builds on the successful tradition of the American Academy school network in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The school is located in one of the most prominent office centers in Zagreb: Agram Office Center. Our goal is to make the American Academy in Zagreb one of the most progressive and dynamic educational institutions in Croatia.
The American Academy concept focuses primarily on developing the academic skills of each of our students. We offer an international, inspiring and motivating environment, and a friendly atmosphere.
As in other schools of the American Academy network, all classes at the American Academy in Zagreb are taught in English by fluent speakers. Once a quarter, students take part in what we call Theme Week. This is a week-long, school-wide project focused on one specific theme that replaces that week’s regular curriculum and offers students the opportunity to use practical project management skills. American Academy is a school well-suited for students who are looking for a modern education that will prepare them for successful lives in the 21st century.
American Academy graduates receive an American High School Diploma, which is the same diploma that students in the United States receive after graduating from high school. With this certificate, American Academy graduates can study anywhere in the world, just as International Baccalaureate graduates from British schools can.
The Middle School Prep Program is a year-long in-person and online English preparatory program for students in the 7th and 8th grades in Zagreb. Our aim is to offer a comprehensive, high quality after-school program for students in Zagreb who are looking to improve their English skills and meet new friends with similar interests. As the future of education is very likely a combination of in-person and online learning, we are utilizing not only our American Academy campus in Zagreb but also our American Academy Online school.
Another important part of this program is what we call “Theme Weekends”.These take place four times per year and see students working together on a large-scale project. At the end of the weekend, the students present these projects to their parents. Theme Weekends enhance learners' organization and management skills, as well as allow them to practice their creativity and communication.
Successful completion of this program culminates in an American Academy Prep Program Certificate, which also serves as an automatic acceptance to the high school program at American Academy in Zagreb.
9th -12th GRADE
9th - 12th GRADE
High School students work to develop their strengths and focus on subjects that prepare them to study their dream disciplines at quality universities around the world.
Students are able to choose the subjects they want to study from the range of classes on offer. American Academy provides small classes and high quality teachers, as well as modern campuses and equipment. Individual attention to each of our students is also a core concept of our schools. American Academy puts a premium on a proactive communication with and between students, parents and staff. We hold monthly parent councils where parents can attend, ask questions and/or learn about recent developments and future plans. Parents also receive a monthly newsletter via email from the Head of School. Furthermore, to ensure constant improvement, an anonymous satisfaction survey is conducted every trimester among parents, students and teachers.
The STEM Program is an add-on to the regular High School Program especially designed for high school students interested in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. In this specialized educational program, we acquaint students with up-to-date technologies, informatics and scientific methods and tools, and at the same time show them how to apply them in everyday life.
While students in the regular High School Program attend their classes, STEM Program students attend two special blocks which are taught every day: Programming & Robotics and Science. Students have at their disposal special classrooms with first-class equipment, so the quality of our program is on par with top private schools in the United States.
Carly McCann, although born and raised in Texas, has spent the majority of the last decade living and working abroad. She graduated from Texas Lutheran University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology with a focus on teaching and coaching with minors in education and biology. Upon the completion of the pedagogical teaching program, she went for her teaching certification and holds many different certifications across all grade levels.
Carly taught 6th Mathematics for 3 years in a public school in Texas. She also tutored students in History, Geography, and the Sciences and has experience teaching children with special needs. In 2016, she decided a change of scenery was needed and she wanted to experience a different lifestyle so she moved to Prague to complete a TEFL certification course and never left. She taught at Beehive school from 2016-2023 where she started as a class teacher, working her way up to the head of maths & science, and eventually became the acting Director in 2020. Most recently, Carly was working as the Deputy Director at Square School in Prague, another school in our network.
In her free time, Carly likes to travel the world and enjoy new cultures and experiences. She is also an avid soccer fan and player. Carly loves working in education and believes that the key to a successful school is based on her belief that all students can learn, given a positive and safe learning environment, a committed and focused educational team, strong leadership, and a supportive community.
The American Academy in Zagreb is the fifth school in the successful American Academy network, and thus is able to draw from the well-established curriculum at other American Academies.This curriculum was in turn inspired by the best educational practises from around the world.
Our faculty consists of the most professional teachers and the most caring staff, all of whom aim to create a friendly, supportive environment. Our graduates are confident, well-rounded people ready to take on the world and continue their studies at top universities around the globe.
Our curriculum is inspired by the best of the world's educational programs, most notably the American and Finnish systems.
Our students have the freedom to choose the subjects they want to study so they can focus on what really interests them and develop the necessary social and practical skills for those particular fields.
We put the highest emphasis on our high-quality academic program. Beyond the wide range of subjects led by such great teachers that we offer, American Academy also provides Advanced Placement (university level) classes, and in September 2021, we opened an extended academic program called STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics).
An American high school diploma, especially when combined with these specialized programs, dramatically increases students’ chances to get accepted by the world’s best universities.
Much like the International Baccalaureate Diploma or British high school diploma, our students must get their diploma validated if they want to apply for a Croatian University. This is a process which we are extremely familiar with, and so we are happy to help students with their individual application processes. American Academy also offers Advanced Placement courses, which are equivalent to university courses in the American and Canadian systems. Students take exams in these subjects which are comparable to the IB exams and accepted by universities around the world.
We believe it is crucial that our students have easy access to a wide variety of knowledge, including subjects not typically taught at schools. Outside of our core curriculum requirements, students are encouraged to identify and focus on what they find most interesting.
Graduation requirements for students entering AAZ in the 2024–2025 academic year:
Total number of credits required for graduation is 67 credits minimum, 72 recommended.
THEME WEEKS
In addition to our American-based curriculum, American Academy offers Theme Weeks inspired by Finnish academic tradition. Theme Week presents students with a school-wide project that develops skills and competencies such as communication, teamwork, collaboration, problem solving, creativity, critical thinking and project management. Here are just a few examples of Theme Weeks from American Academy in Zagreb's sister schools in Prague, Brno and Bratislava.
Students experienced a lot of different things this week – some went to escape rooms in Prague, some went on a haunted statues tour, others went on a cave trip and some even went to Kutná Hora. They experienced these things in order to learn important skills which helped them to conceptualize and organize their own final projects based on the same Magic and Mysteries theme.
These final projects included a phenomenal Haunted House, apuzzling escape room, podcasts, a charity bake sale, an art exhibition, a magic show - and the list goes on and on. Proceeds from the Haunted House, Escape Room and Bake Sale raised money for the SOS Children’s Villages (SOS Dětské vesničky) organization.
This was the most challenging Theme Week students had been faced with. They were tasked with organizing their own business conference, which included everything from scouting venues to developing a program of speakers. Students managed the whole budget, established relationships with partners in the business community and even had to deal with the feeling of rejection. They gained valuable skills which can be applied in their future careers. The end result was an amazing conference held at Brněnské výstaviště which attracted a wide range of audience members which included students and businesspeople. Our students were filled with pride at what they had accomplished.
Fear and Escape Rooms were the focuses of the first Theme Week at the American Academy in Bratislava. Even though it took place from October 21st – 26th, much planning and preparation came beforehand. We split the school into three main groups: Business, Bunker and Hospital. The Business group was in charge of advertising, sales, finances and customer service. The other two groups focused on their specific escape rooms. Students and faculty worked together to learn about fear, handle a business and present an excellent product to the public. We had dozens ofEscape Room customers coming in and leaving thrilled and satisfied on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
Don’t expect long tests; we are mostly interested in the student’s character and enthusiasm. That’s why we focus on essays and a face-to-face interview. For the academic year 2024/25, we have available spaces for 105 students.
You can find our school on the website upisi.hr (Nacionalnoga informacijskog sustava prijava i upisa u srednje škole) under the name AMAC međunarodna škola, which stands for American Academy and is the official name of our company in Croatia.
GRADUATE PROFILE
- 2024 -
An American Academy graduate is a confident young person who is engaged in the immediate world and mindful of the people that exist around them. They have developed confidence, learned to solve problems actively and will always take full ownership of their actions. They have discovered what their personal values are and are able to act upon them in good conscience.
Having graduated from an international school, these students are ready to begin higher education anywhere in the world, including at the most esteemed universities.
COLLEGE ACCEPTANCE MAP
See for yourself that learning can be engaging and support curiosity. Our students develop skills necessary for a successful life at the professional level already in high school.
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