Wellington College International Tianjin 2016 Graduation

On the evening of Thursday 26^th May, the Graduation Ceremony for Year 13 Leavers was hosted in the Seldon Theatre at Wellington College International Tianjin. Held in celebration of the achievements and efforts made by pupils, teachers and parents alike over the course of their time at the School, this incredibly touching and memorable ceremony was attended by the entire Senior School, all academic teaching staff and, of course, many proud parents. In addition to the Board of Governors, the event was greatly supported and attended by Guest of Honour, Mr. Jim James – Managing Director of Morgan Cars, China. Following the Master’s Congratulations and subsequent presentation of graduation certificates, Mr. James was invited to speak about his years spent post-University in enterprise and entrepreneurship, in addition to offering any words of wisdom to all Leavers. His advice to tackle life and pursue careers with vision, passion and humour was incredibly well-received by a captive audience of young people with lofty aspirations, who all took great pleasure in learning about how one man realised a personal dream in bringing the very best and most traditional of UK cars all the way to China. Hosted by Head of Sixth Form, Mr. Neil Elrick, pupils entered into the Theatre to rapturous applause and appreciation from their peers and other excited guests. The evening’s proceedings were punctuated by a number of outstanding musical performances which included the following: -       Hungarian Dance No. 5 by J. Brahms         Piano duet arrangement performed by Annie Song and Tina Guo -       Na Xie Nian (‘Those Years’)         A song composed by Hu Xia, performed by Shirley Zhang -       The Impossible Dream         A song composed by Joe Darion and Mitch Leigh, performed by Sophie Wu -       ‘A Melody for Wellington’         For flute and piano composed by Steve Griffiths (first performance) Performed by Melody Nie – flute -       Badinerie O 16 No. 4 by F. Mendelssohn         Performed by Tina Guo - piano As pupils, teachers and families alike left the Seldon Theatre for the last time, graduation certificates proudly displayed under robed arms, the audience retreated for one final farewell dinner in the Courtyard. It is during these moments of celebration and reflection that all teachers are proud to express their thanks and gratitude to all pupils and parents who have been so proactive in ensuring that the guidance of the School – from the University Guidance Counsellor to the Second Master to the subject teachers, was always adhered to and followed in a way that best prepares Leavers for the next step in life. We look forward to receiving all Leavers and their families back to School in future, as they go off to attend global universities and pursue international careers. Current first-choice offers are as follows:

• Fashion Design, London College of Fashion (UK)
• Television Media, University of British Columbia (Canada)
• Industrial Design, Hong Ik University (Korea)
• Business Management, Carnegie Mellon University (US)
• Art & Business, University of New South Wales (Australia)
• Business, Konkuk University (Korea)
• Economics, UC Davis (US)
• Biomedical Engineering, University of Rochester (US)
• Computer Science, UC Berkeley (US)
• Biomedicine, Queen Mary’s, University London (UK)
• Computer Science & Biology, Hamilton College (US)
• Economics, Penn State University (US)
• Maths, University of Connecticut (US)
• Business Economics, UC Irvine (US)
• Economics, University College London (UK)
• Industrial Design, Rhode Island School of Design (US)
• Fashion Design, Parsons School of Art and Design (US)
• Mathematics, St. Olaf College (US)
• Psychology, Queen Mary’s University London (UK)
• Business Management, University of Queensland (Australia)
• Mechanical Engineering, Hanyang University (Korea)
• Chemical Engineering, UC Davis (US)
• Foundation in Art & Design, Camberwell College of Arts (UK)
• Government, Cornell University (US)

  More information about 2016 Graduates from Wellington College International Tianjin In addition to these first-choice offers, senior school pupils have received interest, offers and scholarships from a much wider range of universities, with the vast majority of pupils receiving on average 3-4 offers from universities and colleges in the US, UK, Korea, Australia, China and Canada. Other offers have come from US colleges including NYU, The George Washington University and UCLA, UK universities including Durham University, Warwick University and SOAS, University of London, in addition to Hanyang University and Hong Ik University in Korea. With a stated aim at Wellington to educate pupils for the future, there are few occasions more gratifying than seeing passions being pursued at some of the world's finest and most progressive universities and higher education institutions. At times like these, congratulations need to be extended in a variety of directions. The invaluable support of a truly professional and motivated teaching team who, in working as a team, have guided pupils through a myriad of selection and opportunity in finding the right courses and locations for them; the relentless and ongoing support of parents in communicating proactively with representatives of the School and, most importantly, for allowing the School to bring out the very best in their children academically; and finally, of course, to the pupils who in persevering to achieve their set goals have learned lessons in humility, independence in learning and research, vital soft skills in communication and the importance in trusting others and working as a team. These offers, though incomplete, secure the School’s reputation for excellence in preparing pupils for further education all around the world, building upon and complementing the wonderful successes of pupils studying at Wellington College in the UK.