The Weird and Wonderful Logos of Singapore International Schools
Ever seen Singapore's lion head symbol with a graduation cap? 🎓
It is no secret that Singapore’s education system churns out book-smart graduates. For spiritually kiasu parents living outside of Singapore who wish their kids could get a MOE-style education, some entrepreneurial educators have found a solution — Singapore International Schools (SIS).
Ever since MOE set up Singapore International School (Hong Kong) in 1991, several private schools of the same name have sprung up across Asia. As the other schools have no affiliation to the Singapore Government or MOE, some of their logos are at best, dubious — and at worst, downright offensive. Here are some of them:
The Gold Standard: Singapore International School (Hong Kong)
Before diving into the strange world of private SIS visuals, we should examine the OG: the only official international school run by MOE — SIS (Hong Kong).
The school logo looks straight out of Space Invaders, built completely with red pixels that form a wide “V” shape and scattered pixels floating on top of it.
Its website loading screen shows the logo in motion, which provides some clues on what this abstract logo is trying to convey.
The animation seems to imply nurturing of talent — as the pixels (education) fall into place, they create a beautiful shape (success).
SIS (Hong Kong)’s logo is so unique that none of the MOE’s local school logos resemble it. This retro-futuristic could easily pass as a 1990s stat board logo for productivity or technology, yet does not look dated in 2025. In fact, it looks refreshing — unconventional, but refreshing nonetheless.
Fair warning: the logos will start to get weird from this point onwards…tread carefully.
Educational Empires: Singapore International School Mumbai and Asia Singapore International School Khon Kaen
SIS Mumbai and Asia Singapore International School (ASIS) Khon Kaen may be unaffiliated schools, but both have crests as their logos.
This logo would fit right in with our local catholic schools’ logos at first glance, but examine it closer and quirks quickly emerge.A tiny Merlion silhouette adorns the top of the shield — an odd choice, since the Merlion is primarily used as a tourist symbol and has never appeared on a local school logo. The number of stars also feels excessive and childish — a jarring contrast to the otherwise serious crest.
SIS Mumbai visually represents its core values using crests as well. Maybe using crests is a way for the school to sell the elite boarding school branding.
ASIS Khon Kaen’s logo resembles state crests rather than typical school crests.
The school explains the logo on its website:
The logo design is inspired by the coat of arms of Singapore, which features a lion, a shield, and a tiger as the main elements to reflect the identity of Singapore School, known for its excellence in teaching and learning. Additionally, the “lion” symbolizes leadership and power, while the “tiger” represents courage and strength. The design portrays the tiger and lion standing gracefully, reminiscent of children who are brave, willing to think creatively, and eager to learn and develop various skills continuously.
The details inside the shield focus on the school’s identity, emphasizing children and their learning in various aspects. It is an internationally recognized school that aims to develop students to excel in learning, leadership, honesty, and integrity.
The colors used in the logo are red and gold. This combination reflects the identity of the “Singapore International School” with red and the elegance of “Thai School” with gold. Together, they represent a harmonious blend of both countries, as illustrated by the red and gold in the logo. -ASIS Khon Kaen
It is strange to model a logo after a state crest, which is meant to be reserved for people, objects, or events of national importance. Although the logo is visually balanced (it shares the usual messiness of crest-style logos due to excessive detail), the elements look pasted together from unrelated sources.
The globe, in particular, gives off sinister “evil video game corporation” vibes.
Global Ambition: Singapore School Philippines
Before revealing the logo for the Singapore School Philippines, take a look at its Manila campus architecture and guess how the logo would look.
You would think that by investing in such a decorative building, the administration would have cared about its branding.
A few questions. Firstly, why is there a British flag? Hopefully someone informed them that Singapore is no longer a colony. Secondly, why does the globe highlight the Indian Ocean instead of any of the three countries whose flags are on the logo? It is a bizarre collage of mismatched elements.
Besides the crudely replicated Lion Head Symbol hovering over the globe which gives off “world domination” vibes, it is also very illegal. Under the National Symbols Act 2022, the Lion Head Symbol cannot be used in any company trademark. Even worse, the symbol is partially obscured by the globe — another no-no for national symbols regardless of country.
With the globe and the British flag, the logo seems to promote a global education rather than a Singapore-focused one. Ironically, the school’s name suggests the opposite. Based on the logo, it should probably be called something like “International School.”
On a lighter note, Singapore School Philippines really loves the Merlion. Their Manila campus newspaper is called The Merlion Times. They organise a film event called the Merlion Film Festival, where they give out Merlion Awards. Surely, there are other Singaporean icons to choose from.
Thinking Caps: Anglo Singapore International School
Anglo Singapore International School, which operates three campuses in Thailand, has the funniest logos in this list. Behold, the smart lion:
On a jewel-adorned medieval shield, a Lion Head-inspired symbol — with more detailed features like a wavy mane and chin fur — wears a graduation cap and a neutral smile. To top it off, the lion has bright blue eyes, which is the only blue element in the entire logo.
At this point, there is no use trying to rationalise these logos — they all look like part of an elaborate trolling campaign. For parents to see these logos and still enroll their children in these schools — presumably drawn in by the name rather than the branding — is really saying something.
Anglo Singapore International School continues the theme with its architecture. Its Nakhon Ratchasima campus is modelled after a castle, because why not?
Unremarkable is Good
Not all SIS schools have unhinged logos. Some are fairly mundane, which is not a bad thing as they appear less dodgy than their more flamboyant namesakes.
Here are some of them:
By the way, Suzhou SIS has a cute dragon mascot.
Shrug it Off
Naming private schools after Singapore can be misleading — with no official links to MOE’s curriculum or even a Singaporean staff member for reference, a deviant learning experience can tarnish the reputation of our education system.
Since these schools operate outside of Singapore’s jurisdiction, the authorities likely feel it’s not worth the trouble to pursue name changes — after all, new ones may pop up like a game of whack-a-mole.
Looking at these logos gives us some insight into how foreigners perceive Singapore visually — whether it’s the Merlion, the Lion Head, or vague ideas of prestige and discipline. If these schools are going to be this literal, we can look forward to a culinary SIS featuring a chicken rice logo.
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