APDE

What APDE does

APDE (legal name: Colegios APDE) is a private bilingual Catholic school network headquartered in Guatemala City, Guatemala, founded in 1970 and operating 8 campuses across Guatemala City and the Carretera a El Salvador corridor (Las Charcas, Campoalegre, El Roble, La Villa, Connections Cayalá, Las Colinas, Entrevalles, and Solalto). The company serves upper-middle-class Guatemalan families seeking premium Spanish-English bilingual education from pre-primary through high school, and holds the unique distinction of being the only school network in Guatemala authorized by the International Baccalaureate Organization to offer the IB diploma program. APDE complements its academic offering with college counseling and preferential-admission partnerships with 7 international universities in Spain, Colombia, Argentina, Mexico, and Guatemala. Auxiliary services include the 'Hubs' student transportation system, extracurricular activities, and pastoral formation aligned with Catholic teachings.

Technology is centered on a proprietary Microsoft 365-integrated portal (APDE Domus Dashboard) for student information, academic records, and administration, supplemented by the SchoolAid mobile application for parent-facing security notifications, an online tuition payment platform, and physical security infrastructure (facial recognition thermal cameras and shock-absorbent flooring) deployed across all 8 campuses. Faculty quality is supported by a stated 100% university-educated teaching corps and 9,000+ hours of annual professional development, while student outcomes include Top 5 MINEDUC standardized test rankings across the four largest campuses and 100% student participation in TOEFL, Cambridge, and Duolingo English proficiency testing.

The business model is a direct-to-consumer recurring tuition subscription, with revenue generated from per-student enrollment fees, ancillary services (transportation, extracurriculars), and operational support functions (online payments). Go-to-market is sales-led and digitally enabled: prospective families are reached via the network's website, educational blog content, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and a WhatsApp Business admissions line, with conversion supported by structured admissions steps and an in-house admissions team. Long retention cycles (K-12 through IB diploma) and a single-country Guatemala footprint define the unit economics, with no publicly disclosed revenue, ownership, or external funding data.

Name

APDE

Legal name

Colegios APDE

Website

https://apde.edu.gt

Company type

Private

Founded year

1970

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Colegios APDE is a private bilingual Catholic school network operating 8 campuses across Guatemala City and surrounding areas, serving Guatemalan families with premium Spanish-English education from pre-primary through high school, including the country's only International Baccalaureate diploma program.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Private K-12 Bilingual Education

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAJABAL

Language Immersion & Bilingual Private Schools

Education/K–12 / Primary & Secondary Education/Private & Independent K–12 Schools

Keywords

• Bilingual education
• Private school network
• International baccalaureate
• Catholic education
• Primary secondary education

Headquarters

HQ city

Guatemala, Guatemala

HQ country

Guatemala

HQ region

Latin America

Offices9 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Tuition and Educational Services: APDE generates revenue primarily through tuition fees charged to families for bilingual Catholic education services spanning preprimary, primary, and secondary levels, including IB programming. Additional revenue streams include school services such as transportation (Hubs system), extracurricular activities, and related educational services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

APDE operates a network of eight bilingual Catholic private schools across Guatemala City and surrounding areas (Las Charcas, Campoalegre, El Roble, La Villa, Connections Cayalá, Las Colinas, Entrevalles, and Solalto). It delivers personalized bilingual Spanish-English education from pre-primary through high school, including the only International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma program authorized in Guatemala, supported by college counseling, international university pathway agreements, and on-campus safety infrastructure.

Product overview

Colegios APDE operates as a network of eight Catholic bilingual private schools across Guatemala (Las Charcas, Campoalegre, El Roble, La Villa, Connections Cayalá, Las Colinas, Entrevalles, and Solalto), offering personalized education from pre-primary through high school. The institution is the only provider of the International Baccalaureate (IB) program in Guatemala. Core educational offerings include Bilingual Pre-primary, Bilingual Primary, and Secondary with IB programs. Supporting products include the APDE Domus Dashboard portal for students and teachers, SchoolAid mobile application for parental security notifications, an online payment system for tuition, and the APDE Digital initiative for digital citizenship education. All schools are officially authorized IB World Schools.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Colegios APDE School Network Network of eight Catholic bilingual private schools in Guatemala (Las Charcas, Campoalegre, El Roble, La Villa, Connections Cayalá, Las Colinas, Entrevalles, and Solalto) offering personalized education from pre-primary through high school, including the IB program at secondary level. Targeted at families in Guatemala seeking premium bilingual Catholic education for their children.
• Bilingual Pre-primary Program (Preprimaria Bilingüe) Bilingual pre-primary education program for young learners focusing on early childhood development and English language acquisition. Offered to families enrolling children in early education at APDE campuses.
• Bilingual Primary Program (Primaria Bilingüe) Bilingual primary education program continuing English language development and academic excellence for elementary students. Offered at APDE campuses as part of the primary school curriculum.
• International Baccalaureate Diploma Program (Bachillerato Internacional) International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma program offered exclusively at APDE schools in Guatemala—the only IB-authorized network in the country—providing globally recognized pre-university education with college counseling and international university pathway support. Targeted at secondary-level students seeking internationally recognized university preparation.

Quantifiable outcome

• Top 5 ranking in MINEDUC standardized test results across 4 major campuses
• +2 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Universidad Internacional de Cataluña (UIC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational university partnership providing APDE students with pathway programs and preferential admission terms toward degrees offered by UIC in Spain.
• Universidad de La Sabana (Virtual)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVirtual university partnership offering APDE alumni continued education opportunities through online programs with preferential enrollment terms.
• Universidad del Istmo (UNIS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGuatemalan university partnership providing APDE students with direct pathways to higher education, including participation in APDE job fairs and preferential admission terms.
• TBS Education (Spain)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSpanish business school partnership offering APDE students access to TBS Education programs in Spain with preferential admission and scholarship consideration.
• Universidad Austral (Argentina)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Argentine university offering APDE alumni pathways to undergraduate and graduate programs at Universidad Austral with preferential terms.
• CIS Spain (Centro Internacional de Sistemas)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSpanish academic institution partnership providing APDE students with access to degree programs in Spain.
• Universidad Panamericana (UP, Mexico)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMexican university partnership offering APDE alumni direct pathways to Universidad Panamericana programs with preferential admission terms.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• The American School of Guatemala: U.S.-accredited private K-12 school in Guatemala City with English-language college-prep curriculum and international university placement. Directly comparable to APDE as a premium bilingual K-12 institution targeting Guatemala's elite families.
• Colegio Maya: Bilingual international school in Guatemala offering K-12 education with IB program and international university pathways. Competes directly with APDE for the same premium Guatemalan families seeking international credentials and bilingual instruction.
• Colegio Americano de Guatemala: Long-established bilingual private K-12 school in Guatemala City serving upper-middle-class families. Directly comparable to APDE in target market (premium Guatemalan families), bilingual model, and university-prep positioning, making it the closest head-to-head competitor in Guatemala.
• Liceo Europeo (Guatemala): Private bilingual K-12 school in Guatemala City serving premium-tier families with European-language curriculum emphasis. Competes directly with APDE for the same upper-middle-class Guatemalan families seeking premium bilingual K-12 education.
• Antigua International School: International bilingual school in Guatemala offering K-12 IB-track programs. Competes for Guatemalan families seeking internationally-recognized credentials and competes with APDE for the same premium tier of education seekers.

Broad incumbents

• Nord Anglia Education: Premium international school group with 80+ schools globally, including selective IB programs. Comparable as a premium bilingual IB-offering operator at much larger scale; relevant for benchmarking APDE's growth trajectory and as a potential strategic acquirer/partner.
• Cognita Schools: International K-12 school group operating premium schools across multiple regions, with bilingual and IB offerings. Comparable in operating model (multi-campus premium schools) and educational positioning, though at significantly larger scale than APDE.
• International Schools Partnership (ISP): Global operator of premium private K-12 schools with strong Latin America presence, including bilingual and IB programs. Comparable to APDE in target market positioning and could expand into Guatemala as a direct competitor.
• Maple Bear Global Schools: Global bilingual K-12 school network with strong Latin America presence, including Guatemala. Comparable to APDE in emphasizing English/Spanish bilingual immersion, though it operates a franchise model across multiple countries rather than a single-faith-owned network like APDE.
• Inspired Education Group: Global premium K-12 operator with 130+ schools worldwide, including across Latin America. Operates bilingual/international schools at scale similar in positioning to APDE's premium tier, and represents a potential competitive entrant or acquirer in Guatemala.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@OficinasCentraleAPDE
• Facebookfacebook.com/colegiosapde
• Instagraminstagram.com/apde_colegios
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/apde

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about APDE