| The Doon School | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Main Building of The Doon School | |
| Location | |
 | |
| Coordinates | 30°20′00″N 78°01′48″E / 30.33333°N 78.03000°E |
| Information | |
| School type | Private boarding school |
| Motto | Knowledge Our Light |
| Founded | September 10, 1935 |
| Founder | Satish Ranjan Das |
| CEEB code | 671616 |
| Chairman of Governors | Anoop Bishnoi |
| Headmaster | Jagpreet Singh |
| Faculty | 70 |
| Grades | 7 to 12 |
| Gender | Boys |
| Age | 12 to 18 |
| Number of pupils | c. 500 |
| Campus | 72 acres (297,314 m2) |
| Houses | 5 |
| Student Union/Association | The Doon School Old Boys' Society |
| Colour(s) | Blue & White |
| Publication | The Doon School Weekly |
| Annual tuition | ₹11,95,000 (home students)[1] ₹14,93,500 (international)[1] |
| Affiliation | IB, CISCE, IGCSE |
| Former pupils | Doscos |
| Website | doonschool.com |
The Doon School (informally Doon School or Doon) is a selective all-boys private boarding school in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India, which was established in 1935. It was envisioned by Satish Ranjan Das, a lawyer from Calcutta, as a school modelled on the British public school while remaining conscious of Indian ambitions and desires. The school admitted its first pupils on 10 September 1935, and formally opened on 27 October 1935, with Lord Willingdon presiding over the ceremony. The school's first headmaster was Arthur E. Foot, an English educationalist who had spent nine years as a science master at Eton College, England.[2]
The school houses roughly 580 pupils aged 12 to 18, and admission is based on a competitive entrance examination and an interview with the headmaster. Every year boys are admitted in only two-year groups: seventh grade in January and eighth grade in April. As of May 2019, boys from 26 Indian states as well as 35 non-resident Indians and foreign nationals were studying at Doon.[3] The school is fully residential, and boys and most teachers live on campus. In tenth grade, students take the Cambridge IGCSE examinations, and for the final two years can choose between the Indian School Certificate or International Baccalaureate. A broad range of extra-curricular activities, numbering around 80, are offered to the boys, and early masters such as R.L. Holdsworth, J.A.K. Martyn, Jack Gibson and Gurdial Singh established a strong tradition of mountaineering at school. The school occupies the former site of the Forest Research Institute and is home to diverse flora and fauna. Doon remains a boys-only school despite continued pressure from political leaders to become coeducational.[4] Old boys of the school are known as 'Doscos'.
Doon has been consistently ranked as the best all-boys residential school in India.[5] Although the school has often been cited as 'Eton of India' by media outlets such as the BBC,[6] The New York Times,[7] The Guardian,[8] The Spectator,[9] The Daily Telegraph,[10] and Washington Post,[11] it eschews the label.[9][12] Doon often draws attention, and sometimes criticism, from the media for the perceived disproportionate influence of its alumni in spheres such as Indian politics, business, or culture. In the 1980s, Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi's administration was criticised, and labelled "Doon Cabinet", following the appointment of his school acquaintances to major posts. The school has educated a wide range of notable alumni, including politicians, diplomats, artists, writers and businesspeople including late Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and Olympic gold medalist Abhinav Bindra.[13][14]
- ^ a b "Get Complete Details of the Annual Fees Structure | the Doon School".
- ^ "FOOT, Arthur Edward". Who Was Who 1961–1970. London: A. & C. Black. 1979. ISBN 0-7136-2008-0.
- ^ https://www.doonschool.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/updated-doon-school-presentation.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- ^ "Old boys want Doon to stay as it is". www.telegraphindia.com.
- ^ Pioneer, The. "17 schools from U'khand secure Top 10 positions in EWISR". The Pioneer.
- ^ "BBC World Service - Witness, India's Eton". BBC.
- ^ STEVEN R. WEISMAN, Special to the New York Times (12 November 1985). "India'S Old School Tie - Harrow By The Himalayas". The New York Times. Dehra Dun (India); India. Retrieved 17 July 2017.
- ^ Dalrymple, William (13 August 2005). "The lost sub-continent". The Guardian.
- ^ a b Read (16 March 2017). "It's a spartan life at 'the Eton of India'". The Spectator. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
- ^ Sooke, Alastair (2 April 2010). "The rise & rise of Anish Kapoor Inc". Archived from the original on 8 December 2013 – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
- ^ Remnick, David (20 October 1987). "Rajiv Gandhi And The Mantle Unsought". The Washington Post. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
- ^ "'Doon of India' wants to conquer the globe". Timesofindia.indiatimes.com. 24 October 2010. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
wsjwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "For wannabe Doons, don from hills is a boon". Times of India. 30 December 2002. Archived from the original on 9 July 2012. Retrieved 12 February 2012.