Sometimes it is only after leaving school that you really appreciate all the opportunities that were offered and here are some views from students who have recently left Gordonstoun.
Seun, Cumming House 2004
"I can honestly say that my two years at Gordonstoun were the best two years of my life so far. I obtained a Leadership Scholarship from the Rank Foundation and also funding from various sponsors, without which I would not have been able to attend the school. In Hackney, where I had been at school previously, I received an education that was deemed one of the poorest in that area at that time but at Gordonstoun I not only received an excellent academic education but a life education as well.
In my short time there I realised how much life had to offer and how much I was capable of. I was able not only to take part in a multitude of activities such as playing basketball and rugby, singing in the choir and performing in various plays and musical concerts, but I also held various positions of responsibility such as being house captain, school prefect and captain of basketball. I travelled great distances representing the school from Lerwick in Northern Scotland to Argentina, South America and gained a qualification as a volunteer fire-fighter. I helped resurrect the school basketball team after a seventeen-year hiatus and performed in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. I accomplished more in those two years than I had done in the last five years at my previous school, and it was this ability to squeeze the most out of life that I cherished so greatly.
I am now studying at the University of Bristol and I feel that my time at Gordonstoun gave me the confidence and determination to really get the most out of my time here. Next year I will be going on a year abroad to study in the United States which I hope will be a fruitful experience and one that I'll never forget. I truly believe that all these things are a direct result of my time at Gordonstoun and the unique principles it continues to impart in its pupils."
Hannah, Altyre 2005
"During my two years at Gordonstoun, I have had a wide range of experiences, which I had never foreseen myself doing from sailing on a yacht for 2 weeks to simply playing squash. This school definitely took me away from my comfort zone, but I have been able to adapt and I am, because of this, a more rounded person. Since the age of 12 I have had the ambition of studying at Cambridge, purely because I thought it was beyond me and liked the idea of stretching myself. I am now studying Natural Sciences at Cambridge University and Gordonstoun has provided me with excellent preparation for this transition both academically and socially."
Emma, Plewlands 2004
"I never really believed I could fulfil my dream! I started Gordonstoun in Year 9 having attended Aberlour House and it was there that I started to develop my passion for drama and acting. Before long I was taking part in lots of school productions, including Bugsy Malone, The Crucible, Cabaret, Midsummer Night's Dream and several GSCE and A level pieces. However it has to be playing Juliet in Romeo and Juliet on a platform alongside the School Yacht in St Katherine's Dock, London, that will be my most treasured memory! All these confirmed my ambition to become an actress.
I am now studying at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama and I am on the way to fulfilling my dream. I know that the road ahead of me will not be easy and that I will have to be really determined to succeed in a very competitive industry but I also know that without the experiences and opportunities I had at Gordonstoun - which saw me travel the world from working in an orphanage in Romania, to attending an international conference in South Africa, to sailing on the School Yacht in the Tall Ships Race and to visiting Russia, India and Kenya as Guardian of the School (Head girl) - I would not have had the confidence to even get this far!