Daybreak - Why Doon School and Mayo College are no longer the obvious choices for India's elite

Episode Date: October 7, 2024

Back in the day, being from one of India’s prestigious boarding schools – the likes of Doon or Mayo – was the ultimate stamp of honour.  Most of these schools were established close to a century ago, during British rule. And for the longest time, they were infamous for taking that legacy pretty seriously. In fact, that was exactly why they remained the go-to destination for India’s elite. But now, things are changing. In the recent past, the likes of Doon and Mayo have had to change their approach. They are now fighting to stay relevant. And the reason for that is the exponential growth of international schools and foreign boarding schools across the country. Tune in. Don't forget to send us your recommendation for this Thursday’s Unwind segment. The theme is “your favourite murder mystery.” Send them to us on WhatsApp as a voice note or as a text message. The number is [phone] Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India’s first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.

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Back in the day, being from one of India's prestigious boarding schools, the likes of Dune or Mayo, was the ultimate stamp of honour. Most of these schools were established close to a century ago during British rule. And for the longest time, they were known... No, wait, scratch that. They were infamous for taking that legacy pretty serious. In fact, it was because of that very legacy that they remained the go-to destination for India's elite. But now things are changing.

You see, in the recent past, schools like Dune and Mayo have been compelled to change their approach. They are now fighting to stay relevant. And the reason for that is the exponential growth of international schools and foreign boarding schools across the country. Just last month, a massive convention was held at the posh Taj Mahal. hotel in New Delhi. It was hosted by representatives of over 30 international boarding schools, with the sole aim of engaging with over 110 Indian families and getting their kids on their student roles. The whole schools included the likes of 2.30-year-old Cheshire Academy in the US, St. Clair's and Oxford in the UK, and a bunch from other countries like Canada and Spain.

You see, many of these global boarding schools are now opening branches here in India. And that's not really great news for the country's OG legacy schools because it means they can't just rely on their storied reputations anymore. But don't get me wrong, it's not that students aren't still whying for seats at these schools. These schools are just struggling to find the quote-unquote right students, ones that align with their values and ethos. Basically, the rich kids are spoiled for choice now. While joining these prestigious legacy boarding schools would have once been a given

they are now increasingly choosing international schools and these offshoots of global schools instead. So to keep up, legacy schools are switching things up in big ways and small. From hosting more open houses, making learning more hands-on and experiential, to drastically changing up their curricula and enrolling more students from small towns. These schools are going all out. Now that the exclusivity they so enjoyed is slowly slipping out of their grasp, They're doing things they have never done before. Welcome to Daybreak, a business podcast from the Ken.

I'm your host, Rahil Filippos, and I'll be joining my colleagues Tickta Sharma every day of the week to bring you one business story that is worth understanding and worth your time. Today is Tuesday, the 8th of October. Let's go behind the scenes at Mayo College in Ajmer Rajasthan. Here, a wave of changes underway. Now remember, this is a school that was founded by the British Wayback. in 1875.

So suddenly, embracing modernity is naturally quite the transition. All the same, the school is moving from just being a traditional one to a futuristic one. And that's not me talking. That's what Sapna Goel, a career counselor at the institute, told the Ken reporter Alifia Khan. She said that the school has recognized that times are changing and it just needs to adapt. So it's now doing things like offering international boards. In fact, just this year, students took their first Cambridge curriculum-led IGCSA examinations. And Mayo College isn't alone.

There are several other legacy boarding schools that are also rethinking curriculum. You see, the Sydney School in Gwalier also changed things around and is experimenting big time. For instance, it's adopting something called experiential curriculum. What this means is kids are doing things like taking responsibility for nearby water bodies and engaging in their restoration. The school is also conducting a whole bunch of field visits for more hands-on learning. Now, while these schools may not directly admit to it, this does have something to do with the elite exodus to IB schools. Now, this has been going on for a while now. First when international schools like Ecole Mondial School in Mumbai and Wasant Valley in New Delhi was set up back in the 2010s,

and now, where we are witnessing a second wave. Centuries-old international boarding schools are establishing their campuses in. in India. And they're not just limiting themselves to big cities anymore. They're also setting up campuses in tier two cities and smaller towns like Pune and Bhopal. So now, legacy schools are feeling the pressure to catch up. But of course, it has not been easy. For instance, the Dune School experimented with both Cambridge and IB curricula only to ditch them a few years later. At least four educational consultants told the Ken that the switch was because of a poor academic show. The school management, however, has a counter-narrative. They say that the school has performed

well even under the IB board. It's just that they had a different timetable for assessments, so they ended up spending nearly two months just on exams because different students were taking it at different times. Their argument is that it was a logistical nightmare. But one thing is clear. It's not just curricula that's changing. The student body is too. More on that in the next segment. In the last few years, legacy schools have actively been diversifying their student body. They've been drawing more and more students from smaller cities and a range of different socio-economic backgrounds.

And with that, there's been a clear change in demographics. Let's go back to Sindhya School in Gwalir. Now there are students coming from as far as Vishaka-Patnam in the south or Raurkela in the east. That's at least a 20-to-30-hour journey by road. and many of these new students are from service class families. This has been the result of a lot of outreach events in newer cities. Basically, Sindia in particular is trying to ditch the elitist dad. And when Alifia spoke to the former principal of Mayo College Surendra Kulkarney,

he confirmed that Mayo is trying to do the same thing. These schools have realised that the elitist label can't be their only selling point anymore. They recognise that tier 2 and 3 towns have aspirational. parents that have the capacity to provide a platform to launch their children. Another big reason for this shift is because in the past, a large chunk of their student body comprise the children of alumni. But now, former students are choosing to send their kids elsewhere. They're looking for schools with better facilities and teachers. But what works in the favour of these boarding schools is that they are still more affordable. Most of these

schools, for example, the Dune School, Mayo College and the Sindhya School, offer to a tuition and boarding at an annual fee of about 10 lakh rupees. The fees typically cover all types of expenses, including accommodation and food as well. So this helps attract students from different parts of the country. At this point, legacy boarding schools are throwing everything at the wall to see what sticks. For instance, Dune School is putting more emphasis on parents' role. So the school is going all out to keep parents in the loop about their children's performance. The Institute is also integrating tech with its teaching methods a lot more of late.

Even when it comes to extracurriculars, these schools are really amping things up. Take Mayo College, for example. It recently upgraded its sports curriculum by hiring an in-house sports psychologist. These schools are basically doing everything that they can to keep up with international schools with deep pockets, which are able to offer things like pickleball to their students. But the more these legacy schools try to play catch-up. the more international schools are landing in the country. And now that the floodgates have swung wide open,

the bar is only going to get higher. The coming decade could redefine legacy schools completely. Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of the Ken, India's first subscriber-focused business news platform. What you're listening to is just a small sample of our subscriber-only offerings. A full subscription unlocks daily long-form feature stories, newsletters and podcast extras. Head to the Ken.com and click on the red subscribe button on the top of the website.

Today's episode was hosted by Rahil Filippos, produced by me Snigda Sharma and edited by Rajiv Sien.