Dulwich College (Singapore)
Reviews & Information

About Dulwich College (Singapore)

Dulwich College (Singapore) opened its state-of-the-art campus in August 2014 and has since established a strong reputation. The College is an international school with a British independent school ethos which draws upon 400 years of excellence, innovation, tradition and values and is proud to welcome over 50 nationalities. It is a co-educational day school, catering for students aged 2 to 18 in classes from Toddler to Year 13.

The College is academically selective and follows an enhanced British curriculum adapted for the needs of our international student body. Students follow the IGSCE curriculum in Years 9, 10 and 11. At Years 12 and 13, students are able to select either the IB Diploma Programme or any of the 6 career pathways* offered in the IB Career- related Programme *(For the 6 pathways offered, pleaser scroll to the section below under 'Senior School'). Continuing the tradition of excellence started by the founding school, Dulwich College in London, Dulwich College International graduates go on to study at leading universities in the UK, USA and around the world.

The College's holistic education is complemented by rewarding co-curricular programmes. Students at Dulwich College (Singapore) are encouraged to participate in sporting competition and every child from the age of seven is taught a musical instrument. Drama and opportunities for public speaking feature heavily from an early age with students using the 700-seat Alleyn Theatre daily for assemblies, performances and more.

The College offers a dual language programme in English and Mandarin for students in Toddler to Year 2 (aged two to seven) and daily Mandarin classes, streamed according to ability from the age of four. Additional modern foreign languages are offered in the Senior School. The close collaboration among the network of Colleges gives our students unique opportunities to participate in events and benefit from the group's relationships with leading educational and artistic organisations. The network enjoys an ongoing and strong partnership with Dulwich College in London.

Our Heritage
Dulwich College London was founded in 1619 by Edward Alleyn, an actor and leading light of the theatre and contemporary of William Shakespeare in the Elizabethan/Jacobean era. He formed the school with the purpose of educating children from disadvantaged backgrounds starting with just 12 poor scholars. From these modest beginnings, the College grew to be one of the UK’s leading independent schools with its 70-acre campus, famous for its iconic clocktower and beautiful green open spaces, located in ‘SE21’ in South London. Alumnus P G Wodehouse spoke fondly of his schooldays there and referred to the College as 'Valley Fields' in his books. Also located close by are sister schools, James Allen’s Girls’ School (JAGS) and Alleyns (co-educational).

Campus Environment
Our purpose-built state-of-the art campus designed with a ‘student-first’ approach offers outstanding facilities and first opened its doors in 2014. The design of our campus revolves around three main focal points to support our holistic learning philosophy – a green, sustainable urban environment, an open and conducive learning community and a reflection of shared values of community and culture.

The educational environment is designed to nurture the intellectual, physical, social, and emotional development of our students. The world-class facilities include three libraries, a Performing Arts Centre with three theatres, three swimming pools, sports fields, roof-top gardens, gymnasiums, three dining rooms and two coffee shops. Every classroom at the College is spacious, bright, ventilated and well furnished. The Performing Arts Centre features science and IT laboratories, suites of music and art rooms and four design and technology workshops. The gymnasium includes a fitness, weights and conditioning room. The campus is designed to be green, natural, spacious and airy to enhance the learning experience. In addition, work has just begun on a brand-new state-of-the-art seven-storey innovation hub which will include a 400-seat multi-purpose auditorium, a STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and maths) workshop, professional teaching kitchen, film and media suites, three additional black box theatres, IT rooms, another gymnasium, tennis courts, a sports science laboratory and a two-storey IB library, workspaces, study rooms and social areas. This building will not only be Green Mark Platinum certified (the highest sustainable construction certification), but also a net-zero energy building. This wonderful addition to the College will open in August 2023.

Academic Rigour
Academic rigour is not just about grades, entrance tests, exams or university placements – although these are the welcome result of academic rigour. Academic rigour is a process and is about culture, the environment and the conditions that provide opportunities for all students to be engaged, challenged and supported. Dulwich College (Singapore) is an academically-selective school with an emphasis on a rich, well-rounded education including sport, music, the performing arts and a wide range of other co-curricular activities. We believe education has to be as flexible, creative and adaptive as our increasingly complex, ever-changing world. This is why we equip our students with the character to stand up and stand out, now and in the future.

Learning is effective when it is personalised, relational, has a clear purpose and when it is adapted and applied. Following an enhanced English National Curriculum with an international perspective, the approach is to bring out the best in every student from DUCKS (early years Toddler – Year 2; age 2-7), to Junior School (Years 3 – 6; age 7- 11) to Senior School (Years 7 – 13; age 11-18). The curriculum is designed to equip students to meet and exceed the end of year expectations of equivalent year groups in the UK.

- DUCKS
In DUCKS, the focus is on educating the whole child and progresses from Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) in Toddler, Nursery and Reception to an enriched version of the English National Curriculum (ENC) in Years 1 and 2. The aim is to strike a balance between student self-guided exploration and explicit teaching of core competencies, particularly in reading, writing, phonics, maths and Mandarin, ensuring that children are able to meet developmental milestones and achieve their academic potential. Above all, the focus is on developing confident and happy children with a zest for life and a love of learning.
Dulwich College was the first international school in Singapore to introduce Forest School, accredited by the UK's Forest School Learning Initiative (FSLI), into the DUCKS early years programme. Dulwich is pioneering the movement here to provide real world learning and problem-solving opportunities to young children in a natural environment. Forest School builds on the Nordic concept of ‘Friluftsliv’ (open-air living) – going back to the forest – where the landscape itself provides both the stimulus and the arena of learning and has myriad positive effects on children’s physical and mental wellbeing. This allows children to develop and apply academic skills, build emotional resilience and learn to manage risk through self-initiated interactions with nature.

- Junior School
As children move through the Junior School the structure of the timetable changes in line with their developmental age. All children receive banded learning for mathematics and Mandarin, but remain with their class teacher for most lessons up to Year 5. In Year 6, in preparation for the transition to Senior School, children are taught by different subject teachers for each area of the curriculum. The College also prepares students returning to school in the UK or elsewhere for success in 7+, 11+ and common entrance examinations.

The emphasis in Junior School is not only on deeper learning and the mastery of academic content, but also on developing critical thinking skills and an academic character that inspires self-motivated learners and long-term success. The goal is to foster the long-term retention of valuable knowledge, concepts and skills and the ability to transfer what has been retained into different contexts and situations.

- Senior School
The approach in Senior School is to not only develop subject proficiency and skills, but also lifelong, transferable skills such as research, communication, thinking, social and self-management skills. This ensures students can take ownership of learning in school and life beyond, as well as developing a lifelong love of learning. In Years 7 and 8 the curriculum has been designed to develop individual subject-based skills and build knowledge and understanding to provide a strong foundation for the IGCSE, IB programmes and beyond. Dulwich College is the only school in Singapore to offer a 3-year IGCSE (International General Certificate of Education) programme which commences in Year 9, with a number of core and optional IGCSEs to choose from. Upper Senior School students can choose to follow either the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme or IB Career Related Pathway (IBCP) in the last two years before university. Within the IBCP, students have a choice of 6 different pathways to select. The pathways cover Business and Sustainability, Creative Practice: Art, Design and Communication, Digital Technology, Engineering ,Performance and Production Arts, and Sports.

In Senior School Dulwich is on a mission to help students visualise their personal pathway so that they can confidently pursue the career path of their choice. The school complements the pursuit of academic excellence with ground-breaking programmes in music, performing arts and sport. The Ignite! Exceptional Performance Development Programme supports Senior School students committed to a career in the performing arts, music, or sport or who simply want to maximise their potential. With personalised mentoring, skills development, working with industry practitioners, Ignite! helps students shape and achieve their goals.

Read More on School Website...

Ethos Statement

Dulwich College (Singapore) is an international school founded on the ethos and values of the British independent schooling system, but with a global outlook and contemporary approach that reflects the diverse backgrounds of our students.