Robert Gordon's College
Aberdeen City, United Kingdom
About Robert Gordon's College
Robert Gordon’s College is an independent, co-educational nursery and day school for children aged 3-18 years. It is a school community with a very strong sense of identity, built on our history and tradition of excellence in the city of Aberdeen, with beautiful countryside on its doorstep.
Community
Beyond the history and tradition, at Robert Gordon’s you will find an energy and youthful motivation that offers enthusiasm and effervescence for learning and culture. Our modern, professional learning environment is excellent, with a focus on sharing good practice in learning and teaching, on Continuing Professional Development (CPD), and on achieving the highest possible academic standards. We offer the opportunity to work with well motivated pupils where teaching and learning is at the heart of all our activities and ethos at the school. The extra-curricular life of the school is a crucial part of the pupils' experience and one in which all staff join enthusiastically. Above all, the ethos of the school is welcoming and positive, among staff, parents and pupils.
We are a friendly, purposeful and well-focused school, confident in our core business of advancing learning and teaching, while at the same time providing an enjoyable community life for its staff.
Robin Macpherson, Head of Robert Gordon’s College shares: “As Head of College, I’m very proud of our school. Our motto translates as “Be all you can be” - and it’s something that we use time and time again in conversations with pupils as they progress through school. We aim to equip and inspire young people for their futures. The whole community is passionate about sharing knowledge, sparking curiosity and inspiring pupils about their future. This is achieved through the extensive range of opportunities available. We’re a family school, and we want you to be happy and successful - in that order.”
Opportunity and Choice
Pupils follow the Scottish curriculum and from the earliest age children are used to active interdisciplinary learning in the class, building confidence through participation. Our new purpose-built Nursery for children aged 3–5 years old opened in August 2019 with specialist teaching in Art, Drama, French, Mandarin, Music and Physical Education. From Primary 1 the curriculum is enriched by specialist teaching in Art, Drama, French, Music, Physical Education and Science. In S1–S2, pupils study a wide range of subjects including all three sciences taught separately and three languages over the course of the two years. In S3–S4, pupils study eight National 5 courses; in S5, pupils choose from 24 Highers and S6 pupils choose from any combination of 32 Highers and 26 Advanced Highers, in addition to curriculum enhancement courses.
Innovation and forward thinking sit comfortably alongside over 250 years of tradition. Since 2009, over £31 million has been invested in facilities across the school to make sure that the classrooms want for nothing in terms of teaching and learning. Robert Gordon’s College represents the best of a traditional Scottish education, but is also a school looking towards the future.
Local school, global outreach
Robin Macpherson highlights: “We’re a local school that thinks globally. We have pupils from the city and the shire, and with Aberdeen’s position in the global energy sector, we’re proud to welcome families from international destinations each year. Diversity is a real strength of our community; 37 nationalities are represented within our school gates. Last year we spent £1.8 million on bursaries enabling pupils from across the north east region to join our senior school. This is a genuinely inclusive school and families from all walks of life contribute to our vibrant community.
“We’re keen that pupils develop their own sense of identity. We want them to discover who they are, and in turn what their place in the world is. We always look to challenge them, and help them to achieve things that they might not think possible. We want them to be brave and adventurous, with a particular focus on learning how to learn, so they can adapt and thrive in an ever-changing world.”
Critical thinking, mentoring and networking
Teamwork, communication and leadership are encouraged to prepare pupils for entering the world of work. Developing an entrepreneurial mindset enables pupils to leave school with confidence and the belief that they can make a positive impact in the world.
Robert Gordon’s College staff and pupils benefit from the experience of former pupils and our global network of partners across the world.
Explore
If you would like to learn more about joining the Robert Gordon’s College family please visit our website where you can explore our city centre campus in Aberdeen and 39 acre sports fields at Countesswells.
Keep up to date with the latest RGC news via Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube. RGC Sport is also on Twitter and Instagram, and RGC Art and Design is on Instagram.
Location
Robert Gordon’s College is a great community to be a part of, with many opportunities for pupils and staff alike. I am a Technology teacher first and foremost but over the years I have tried to be involved in the school as much as possible, running extra curricular clubs involving design and manufacture, textiles and I helped in the computing club for girls. School projects and trips have taken me out of my comfort zone and challenged me at times with activities such as chair lifts to the top of the island of Capri, attempting to windsurf and power boat on the Isle of Cumbrae, and learning robotics programming in the MIT museum workshops. It has spurred me to continue the challenges and learning throughout my career, my teaching qualifications and responsibilities are also expanding to Art this year as well as Technology and at the moment I am Acting Head of Collyhill House and loving the enthusiasm of the pupils and support they show each other in all the activities we arrange. Since joining the College in 2009, the school and my department has gone through many changes. Noticeably the Science and Technology Centre increasing our classroom space, giving us a long awaited workshop and designated areas for our state of the art machines e.g. 3D printer, laser cutter and 3D scanner. It is a privilege to work with industry standard equipment and software, and to pass this knowledge onto the pupils. The NuVu educators course in Boston gave me an insight to design thinking and running projects with different ages and skill bases. The course is set out to inspire young minds into the creative process and taking them through a journey of discovery from sketching, model making and skills based workshops covering CAD and Arduino programming. I am hoping to take knowledge to run STEAM based clubs during school holidays.
- Lyndsey Maclean, Teacher of Technology“Robert Gordon’s College is an exceptional school where staff and pupil relationships are at the centre of learning. I feel very lucky to be surrounded by motivated learners who aim to be the best they can be in my subject and I have been fortunate to teach all areas of the curriculum from Nursery to S6. The College encourages you to share your passion with the pupils. In Netball, I have been supported to develop pupils of all abilities and it is always exciting when we make a national final or see one of our pupils gain a cap for their country. Robert Gordon’s College gives me everything I would want as a teacher and I feel very privileged to be part of such an exciting and diverse community.”
- Stacey Hardie, Head of S1“It has been great to return to Robert Gordon’s College and take up my position as an Early Years Practitioner in the wonderful new Nursery that is now open all year round. I enjoy supporting the children in their individual learning and am eager to motivate them to try their best at all times. This year I am looking forward to helping further develop the children’s learning outdoors both in our dedicated play area at Schoolhill and through our weekly trips to our Countesswells Sports Fields.”
- Christopher Sim, Early Years Practitioner“As a sector-leading school, parents value the opportunities offered to their children, through the wide range of specialist teachers and extra curricular clubs available. Children are challenged to be curious and develop a love of learning in a supportive and caring environment.”
- Sarah Webb, Head of Junior School“Emotional Intelligence Quotient (EQ) is as important as Intelligence Quotient (IQ). It is important to have respect, emotional intelligence and to not be scared to try new things. You have to treat each person as an individual and in turn they will help you to grow as a leader and as a company.”
- Martin Gilbert, Class of 73, Chair of Aberdeen Standard Investments“What Robert Gordon’s really taught me was how to learn, how to be curious and how to keep my brain flexible and open to learn new things. When you are in the classroom or doing your homework, you are teaching your brain how to learn and the ability to learn is such an important foundation for your success and enjoyment in life.”
- Sandy Manson, Class of 79, Chairman of Johnston Carmichael“The teachers and staff are always there to make learning easier through thought-provoking lessons, while encouraging regular study skills. By having a Form and Guidance Teacher, we always have some ready to help when we are having problems or need someone to talk to.”
- Anish, Senior School Pupil“Robert Gordon’s is fun, fantastic and exciting. Every morning I look forward to seeing my teacher and friends.”
- Eva, Junior School Pupil“The Gordon’s spirit instills us with confidence and gives us empathy for others to get through challenges.”
- Chris Simpson, Class of ‘91, Teacher of Technology in Victoria, AustraliaSince she moved to Gordon’s, it’s as if someone has switched on the lights. It’s the best thing we did for her. She says she wishes she had gone to Gordon’s earlier. She comes home happy every day.
- Parent