Alumni
Admissions Update - April 2021
In spite of the global pandemic, we are in the strongest admissions position ever in my memory. We are extremely close to reaching our target for next year, a couple of months sooner than normal. Re-enrollment letters were sent out to our current families at least a month earlier than usual this year with a 95% return for Domestic and 94% return for International.
There has also been great interest at the junior level with our Grade 8 and Grade 9 classes showing healthy numbers for 2021-22. The quality of our applicants also continues to impress and we have a solid wait pool at the senior grade levels.
With regards to our Shawnigan community: as usual, we are seeing many younger siblings from current families joining us, with a handful of academically and socially strong Grade 7 age students skipping a year to enter our Grade 8 class. There has also been an increase in interest from alumni with children entering Grades 9 and 10 in particular. Canmore is quite the hotspot for us right now. In addition, there is a decent number of staff children also enrolled for September.
Word of mouth continues to be one of our main selling features with lots of interest from Yellowknife, Alaska, smaller towns in BC and Whistler, of course. Enrollment numbers are higher than usual for the US and for British Columbia.
Although nothing can replace the magic of being toured around campus by one of our senior students followed by the experience of a class shadow day and sleepover, Zoom has actually served us very well indeed as we've averaged about four Zoom interviews per day as of last October.
We are seeing a high interest on the international front as well. Mexico, Hong Kong and Germany in particular are countries we receive many inquiries and applications from. Mexican applications have doubled this admissions year, and we have four current German students who will stay until graduation (which is very uncommon as German students usually stay for one year at Shawnigan).
We have received many applications that are either siblings or cousins or very close friends. In addition to the incredible word of mouth marketing, which is so important to our efforts, we are busy attending selected online fairs and webinars in Greater Asia (including India), Saudi Arabia, Finland, Czech Republic, Italy, Switzerland, Albania, Japan, North America East (including Carribean), and North America West (including Mexico).
The School has worked hard to increase genuine access and diversity through our commitment to financial aid, with over 40% of our current students receiving some form of financial aid.
We so appreciate all of the positive messaging that our Shawnigan community shares around the world. Our thanks go out to everyone who is spreading the word in their communities, and we welcome you to put us in touch with anyone that you feel might be a good fit for Shawnigan.
Gaynor Samuel
Executive Director of Admissions
We acknowledge with respect the Coast Salish Peoples on whose traditional lands and waterways we live, learn and play. We are grateful for the opportunity to share in this beautiful region, and we aspire to healthy and respectful relationships with those who have lived on and cared for these lands for millennia.
Shawnigan Lake School is an independent co-educational boarding school for ages 13 –18 on Canada’s beautiful West Coast. Our diverse, interdisciplinary and innovative programming helps shape the next generation of global leaders.
