Here we meet a few of our recent leavers to find out what they have been doing in the short time since they left school and what they hope to achieve in the future.
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Alex Cahill(09-20)
The experience of leaving the College was, as for every other student our age, anti-climactic. Hearing from boys in years above me talk about the whole ‘leavers experience’, I couldn’t help but feel a little cheated out of what must be a landmark occasion in any student’s life. However, this was quickly put to the back of my mind, and instead replaced by severe stress over what grades I would receive and how this would be graded and moderated.
Recent Leavers Reflect Leavers destinations: by subject and destination
Results day was again an anti-climactic experience, and I was certainly involved in the complete shambles created by Ofqual and their less than intelligent algorithm! Thankfully a matter of weeks later the exams debacle was resolved and I managed to receive the grades I needed to apply to university. Whilst I always intended to take a gap year, where I find myself now, I’m certainly glad I didn’t choose to go to university this year. Hearing from friends who have chosen to go, it seems to me that COVID has resulted in an experience unlike any other. It took me a very long time to find work, having applied for fifty or so different job vacancies without so much as an acknowledgment of my application. I know for many people my age this was common, and I felt lucky to find a job eventually. I’m hoping that the new vaccine may allow international travel to resume. If so, I’ll be heading to Toronto with three friends from Dulwich to play rugby. However, if there is one lesson that I have certainly learned not only from this year but from my time at the College, it is to always have a Plan B, or even C!
Most popular university choices: (figures include OAs on deferred entry):
ENGINEERING SCIENCES ECONOMICS HISTORY COMPUTING LAW LANGUAGES ARTS AND DESIGN BUSINESS AND FINANCE ENGLISH MATHEMATICS POLITICS PHILOSOPHY MEDICINE PPE
20 14 14 13 11 11 11 10 10
UCL
Each year, a number of our leavers choose to study abroad at universities across the globe. This year includes:
Manchester
Oxford Durham
Adam Kinirons (15-20)
Newcastle Edinburgh Nottingham Cambridge
7
USA (including Duke and UCLA)
Bath
In March, the extraordinary news came that schools were to shut. When Boris announced cancellation of exams, I had mixed feelings. A great weight had been lifted, but I also felt disappointment that I wasn’t going to showcase all the hard work I had put into my studies. I was confident in my teachers’ and Ofqual’s ability to correctly represent me in my results, however there was a constant fear that this would not be the case, and come 13 August 2020, my fear became reality. I had been awarded grades below my mock exam results and what my teachers had submitted, which in turn meant no university I was interested in would even glance at my application. A huge stress was piled on me and those around me. I lost my offers and frantically called universities daily to find a course. Once the government announced their U-turn, the revised grades met my top university choice - a massive relief. I now have a deferred place at Newcastle University and I’m currently on a gap year. I am very much in touch with my friends from Dulwich College and although we didn’t have a Leavers’ Day or the usual celebrations, we’ve had a shared experience of being ‘the year that didn’t finish school’.
3 2 1
Netherlands
Canada
Hong Kong
Marcus Marchant (13-20)
GEOGRAPHY PSYCHOLOGY MUSIC CLASSICS SPORT
I experienced a whole range of emotions when I heard my final year was to be cut short with no final A-level exams; shocked not to end my 7 years at Dulwich with traditional school send offs; disappointed that I couldn’t give that last surge of motivation to secure the grades I wanted; and a surge of delight because exams were cancelled. I guess many friends will agree with that sentiment. Fortunately, I got into Newcastle University to study Psychology, after a scramble and a few disappointed grades at the time. I was also able to take one important exam in September: LAMDA gold medal and was awarded Distinction. Looking to the new year, I’m thrilled to return to Dulwich College as a Sport Gappy in the Spring term. A good way to round off my Dulwich time.
Luke Cunningham (13-20)
We were gearing up to prepare ourselves for the most influential and hard-working 4 months of our lives when normal life came to an end. I was working in the DT Department, with the deadline of my coursework on the horizon, when I heard the news that exams would be cancelled.
Panic, confusion and a touch of frustration.
As lockdown began, I turned to what I’m familiar with: exercise and fitness. As time wore on, the aim was to be productive. Running a marathon, a 26-hour Table Tennis
challenge for Macmillan Cancer Support (raising £4,500), as well as decorating my room, coaching cricket, and occasionally ditching Zoom calls to meet family and friends in real life. As a school, we were able to finish our cricketing careers, with four matches, of which two were rained off; however, the other two were both victories - an undefeated season. When results day arrived, I was excited but anxious, as I had no idea what to expect. In order to gain my place at Bath to study Architecture, I would need to sit Maths again in October. Several days later, whilst sailing in the Ionian Sea, my grades changed - a moment of relief yet disbelief as I was gifted a set of results I probably should not have received.
Now I could continue my gap year as planned. Argentina is no longer an option for the near future, nor are many other countries, so I have decided to extend my job (that I am lucky enough to have) at the school I am working at.
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