Online School & Homeschool in Erbil

Online school and international curriculum in Erbil

For Erbil families — the country's deepest international provision, and the subjects even a good school cannot staff.

Live online Cambridge IGCSE, Cambridge A-Level, Pearson Edexcel International, IB Diploma Programme, and American Curriculum with Advanced Placement (AP) for Erbil families. The Kurdistan Region's capital carries its business and administrative centre, a substantial diplomatic, energy and commercial community, and the deepest international school provision in the country — several British-curriculum and international schools, alongside the University of Kurdistan Hewlêr teaching in English. Those schools are good. What a school of any size still cannot always do is staff Further Mathematics for four students, or a third science, or an A-Level set that clashes with everything else. That is most of what we do here.

Challenges Erbil families face

Specialist A-Level subjects often will not run for small cohorts even in strong schools.
International school fees are set at regional levels with competitive places.
Education in the Region is administered by the Kurdistan Region's own Ministry of Education.
We could not verify a position on parental home education in either administrative track.
Time zone: none — Iraq and our teaching base both run UTC+3 year-round.

Why Erbil families choose Smartious

The set your school cannot staff: Further Mathematics or a third science for four pupils is unviable on one timetable and routine in a live group drawn from several countries.
Respectful of provision that already exists: Erbil has the country's best international schools and we are not pretending otherwise. We supplement them.
Exactly your clock, all year: Zero offset with no seasonal drift — after-school, mid-morning or evening all work equally.
The two education authorities explained: The Kurdistan Region has its own Ministry of Education, distinct from the federal one. Which applies to a family depends on where they live, and we set that out.
Continuity for a posting that moves: The curriculum, teachers and examination board continue unchanged to the next country.

Erbil sits within the Kurdistan Region, which has its own Ministry of Education administering schooling in Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Duhok and Halabja — distinct from the federal Ministry of Education, which administers the governorates under federal administration, with differences in curriculum, language of instruction and school administration between the two tracks. That is the structural fact families here should hold onto: the ministry that governs your situation is determined by where you live, in the same way that Bosnian, Argentine and Swiss families deal with different administering authorities inside one country. Education is compulsory at the primary level, private and international schools operate with licensing from the relevant ministry, and Smartious holds no such licence and issues no Iraqi or Regional qualification. We could not verify a position on parental home education in either track and will not guess in either direction — confirm with the Kurdistan Region's Ministry of Education if you live in the Region, and note that an absence of clear regulation is an absence of protection rather than a permission. Our arrangement is live international teaching alongside a school enrolment.

Smartious delivers to Erbil families online; the live programme is complete without in-person supplementation.

Live online via Smartious LMS on exactly Iraq's clock with no offset at all, and every session recorded.

Erbil is the Kurdistan Region's capital and business centre, with a substantial diplomatic, energy and commercial community, the deepest international school provision in the country, and the University of Kurdistan Hewlêr teaching in English. Iraq runs UTC+3 year-round, exactly our teaching clock.

Family situations we work with

Diplomatic, consular and international-organisation families.
Energy, commercial and corporate households.
Families in the international school sector needing a subject their timetable cannot cover.
Students targeting UK, American, Canadian or Gulf universities.
Households arriving mid-curriculum from another country's system.
Academic families connected to the Region's English-medium universities.

Erbil communities and nearby areas

Erbil · Ainkawa · Masif · Shaqlawa · Koya · Soran · the Erbil plain

Common questions from Erbil families

Our school is one of the best in the country — what would we gain?

Usually one specific thing: a subject set your timetable cannot staff. Further Mathematics, a third science, or a set that clashes with everything else. If your school covers what your child needs, we will tell you so.

Which ministry applies to us?

If you live in the Kurdistan Region — Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Duhok or Halabja — the Region's own Ministry of Education administers schooling. Elsewhere it is the federal Ministry of Education. Curricula and administration differ between the two.

What time are classes?

Any hour of our teaching day, at exactly the time it shows on your clock — Iraq and our teaching base both run UTC+3 year-round with no seasonal changes.

Guides for families in Iraq

What parents say

Rated 4.9 out of 5 on Google from 130+ reviews. Read our Google reviews

“I am truly impressed by the level of professionalism at Smartious Homeschool and Tuition. The tutors are not only knowledgeable but also very patient and supportive. They create a comfortable learning environment where children feel free to ask questions. My child now enjoys studying and looks forward to every session.” — Google reviewer, Google review