Westlake Girls High School（西湖女子高级中学）New Zealand Study Guide: Programs, Entry Requirements, Costs and Student Life

This guide is written for families and students planning secondary study in New Zealand, and it covers Westlake Girls High School（西湖女子高级中学）from the four angles in the title: programs, entry requirements, costs and student life. Everything below comes from the school's official website (westlakegirls.school.nz), its international student sub-site (international.westlakegirls.school.nz), and the official fee schedule, application-deadlines sheet and International Student Handbook published there, all accessed on August 5, 2026. Where the school does not publish a figure, this guide says so plainly instead of guessing. ## About Westlake Girls High School Westlake Girls High Schoolis a state girls' secondary school at 2 Wairau Road, Takapuna, on Auckland's North Shore, about twenty minutes from the city centre. The school describes itself as a single-sex environment built around the whakatauki Te Mana Wāhine — education for empowerment — and its history page records that the school split from the co-educational Westlake High School in 1961 and opened in its own right in 1962 with 650 students; the website's 2024 figures put the roll at over 2,300 students, with a brother school (Westlake Boys High School) sharing the Westlake Swan emblem and many joint activities. International students are supported by a dedicated International Department with orientation, 24-hour emergency assistance, academic and pastoral care, airport pickup, homestay placement, online visa renewal help and student insurance, and first-language support for Chinese, Korean and Thai students. A Big Sister, Little Sister programme pairs senior students with newcomers, and three International Prefects are elected each year to look after international students. The school's motto is Virtute Experiamur — Let Courage Be Thy Test. ## Programs: NCEA, University Entrance and Enrichment Westlake Girls High Schoolteaches the New Zealand National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA), which has three levels usually matched to year groups: Level 1 in Year 11, Level 2 in Year 12 and Level 3 in Year 13, with University Entrance (UE) also reached through the NCEA pathway in Year 13. Assessment combines internally assessed work marked by teachers against strict criteria with external assessment through portfolios and examinations; each level is graded Achieved, with Merit or Excellence endorsements available. The official curriculum pages spell out the UE requirements: NCEA Level 3; 14 credits in each of three approved subjects at Level 3; 10 literacy credits (5 reading and 5 writing) at Level 2 or above; and 10 numeracy credits at Level 1 or above. Students who reach Merit or Excellence can be invited into extension classes, and the school runs a STEAM programme (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Mathematics); high achievers may sit Scholarship examinations. Beyond the classroom the school lists nearly 40 sports as well as robotics, drama, environmental groups, music, art and leadership programmes, and its music department works with Westlake Boys High School and has won national and international competitions. The campus includes a modern Event Centre, a library, and first-class sports fields and covered courts. ## Entry Requirements and Application Materials Westlake Girls High Schooldoes not publish a single minimum language score for international admission; the application process PDF lists the documents to prepare instead. Required scans include a valid passport, a passport photo, school reports from the last two years translated into English, vaccination evidence if available (with English translation) and insurance evidence if available (with English translation). Long-term students take an online interview, or an interview arranged by the school, and the school reserves the right to contact the applicant's previous school. Entry is by application per term rather than by a fixed year-level intake list, so families should confirm current year-level availability with the school. Once enrolled, attendance is compulsory at 100% of the programme: unjustified absence is reported to Immigration New Zealand and can put a student visa at risk. Year 12 and Year 13 students may work part-time with International Department approval and a student visa variation of conditions (VOC); international students may not drive or own a car or other motor vehicle while studying. ## Application Process and Deadlines The application flow at Westlake Girls High Schoolhas five steps: complete the online sign-up form; the school evaluates and emails an Offer of Place with an invoice; after the full tuition fee is received the school emails a receipt and a copy of the Offer of Place for the student visa application; the student applies for the Student Visa before arriving in New Zealand; and once flights are booked the student tells the school their arrival details so airport pickup from Auckland can be arranged. The deadlines PDF states that enrolment timelines are fixed annually and applied consistently each year: Term One applications close 1 October with payment by 20 October; Term Two applications close 1 February with payment by 20 February; Term Three applications close 1 May with payment by 20 May; and Term Four applications close 1 August with payment by 20 August. The school advises applying early to secure a place. The 2026 school year runs: Term One 27 January – 2 April, Term Two 20 April – 3 July, Term Three 20 July – 25 September, and Term Four 12 October – 7 December. ## Costs: the 2026 and 2027 Fee Schedule The official 2026/2027 schedule of fees for Westlake Girls High Schoolpublishes two columns, 2026 FEES and 2027 FEES, all in New Zealand dollars including GST and subject to change. Tuition is $23,000 for 2026 and $25,000 for 2027; the administration fee is $2,500 in both years; homestay placement costs $450; the designated caregiver monitoring fee is $300 in 2026 and $450 in 2027; homestay costs $18,000 per year in 2026 (45 weeks at $400 a week) and $20,250 in 2027 (45 weeks at $450 a week); the contingency fee is $1,900 in 2026 and $2,000 in 2027; health insurance arranged by the school is $633 a year in 2026 (Southern Cross) and $699 a year in 2027 (Student Safe); the room holding fee during the Christmas vacation is $100 a week in 2026 and $150 a week in 2027; school uniform is approximately $700 in 2026 and $800 in 2027; and special diet costs are $30 a week in 2026 and $40 a week in 2027. The minimum enrolment period is two terms. The handbook adds that changing homestay families costs another $450 placement fee, that board is paid fortnightly, and that returning to the same homestay after the summer holiday carries the weekly room holding fee. ## Accommodation, Insurance and Student Life Living arrangements at Westlake Girls High Schoolare strictly defined in the International Student Handbook. There are only three permitted options: homestay with a police-checked family selected and regularly inspected by the international team; a designated caregiver; or living with a parent who holds a caregiver visa. Living alone or flatting is not allowed in any circumstances. Homestay gives students daily practice in English and a window into New Zealand family life and food, and the handbook requires at least one week's written notice before moving out of a homestay. Medical and travel insurance is compulsory for the whole stay, because most international students cannot use New Zealand's free public healthcare; the school follows the Education (Pastoral Care of Tertiary and International Learners) Code of Practice 2021, and the emergency number in New Zealand is 111. The school is a BYOD school: students bring a laptop and use the campus Wi-Fi. Weekly life includes the enrichment activities listed on the international pages, weekend social and cultural activities, and the city of Auckland itself, which the school's About Auckland page describes as a mild-climate, multicultural city of two harbours, volcanoes and beaches, often called the City of Sails. ## Frequently Asked Questions Which year levels can international students join at Westlake Girls High School? The school does not publish a fixed year-level intake list; applications are made per term and year-level availability should be confirmed with the school. Is an IELTS score required? The school publishes no minimum language score; documents and an online interview are the main assessment, so check the latest official requirements. What does the fee cover? Tuition, administration, homestay placement or homestay fees, contingency, insurance and uniform are itemised separately in the official schedule. Can international students work? Year 12 and Year 13 students can work part-time with International Department approval and a visa variation of conditions, with good attendance. What happens if a visa is refused? The handbook's refund policy allows a full tuition refund (less the administration fee paid) on production of the visa refusal letter. ## Summary Westlake Girls High Schoolpublishes unusually complete official information for international families: NCEA levels and University Entrance requirements, a five-step application flow with fixed per-term deadlines, a two-year fee schedule, and clear rules on homestay, insurance and attendance. Fees and dates change with each school year, so treat the August 2026 versions here as a starting point and confirm against the latest official documents before committing. If you would like help matching a student's year level, language background and budget against the school's current published information, our advisers here can walk you through the official pages and the application steps.