Deemed one of the most elite educational institutions, The Doon school has spawned many a luminaries cutting across various professions over the years. Rajiv Gandhi, Vikram Seth, Suman Dubey, Ramchandra Guha, Abhinav Bindra, Prannoy Roy have all had their formative years take shape at the Doon.
The Doon School aims to be an institution of excellence, dedicated to producing leaders of the future.
The boys-only private boarding was founded by Satish Ranjan Das, one of pre-Independence India’s eminent barristers and a member of the Executive Council of the Viceroy of India, who envisioned India’s first public school at a time when “Chief’s Colleges” were order of the day.
Drawing on its tradition and rich history, the school aims to promote an appreciation of India’s rich culture in its students. The school has tied up with a number of overseas schools it runs student exchange programmes with. It is affiliated to the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) which offers the International Baccalaureate Diploma. The diploma is recognised and respected across world leading universities and brightens prospects of education overseas.
The Doon School has been ranked the number 1 boys day boarding school in the country in a survey conducted by Education World and C-fore across 725 schools in 21 states. It has been awarded the best value for money International Boarding school and is the only Indian school to be a member of the International Boys’ Schools Coalition, a band of over 200 boys’ schools around the world.
The school has found a mention in a string of novels, documentaries and films. Vikram Seth used his own experiences of being bullied at The Doon to model the character of Tapan in A Suitable Boy. BBC Sport made a documentary on the School for the World Olympic Dreams Project. In the realm of sports too, the school strives to implant a certain minimum proficiency in the boys.
A 25-metre swimming pool, four squash courts, two new all weather basketball courts, four new all-weather tennis courts, cricket grounds, hockey and football fields provide excellent training grounds for budding sportsmen.
It boasts of a visit by the leading international football club F.C. Barcelona that conducted a skill-based course for boys of all ages.
Being a residential school, creating a family-like environment is its chief goal. Active interaction between pupils and teachers ensures that. The student teacher ratio is kept at 10:1 for each student’s progress to be monitored.
To bring about an all-round development, students pursue yoga, music, art, carpentry and Sanskrit. An interest in language and literature is sought to be reared through publications that are written and edited by the students. The Doon School Weekly has been in existence since as early as 1936.
