On Friday 2nd August Old Boy, Duncan Parsons, visited the school and was invited by the Rector to talk to the boys in assembly. Duncan left school in 2014 and after a semester at Canterbury University was accepted into several American universities including Harvard and Yale. He was also awarded the Julian Robertson scholarship (worth approximately $250, 000) to attend Duke University in North Carolina and this is the offer that he finally accepted.

Duncan made the most of his opportunities at school from playing football for the 1st XI and tennis for the top tennis team to gaining a distinction for the Trinity College Public Speaking Diploma. He was a school prefect and was named Dux as well as earning five scholarships in his final year. He was awarded his Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award after leaving school and was then chosen to receive his award at Buckingham Palace as part of the 70th birthday commemorations of this scheme.

Duncan originally set out to study engineering at Duke but switched to economics when he realised that is where his real interest lay. Apart from his studies, he has been able to pack a lot into the last four years including travel through Asia and Africa and an extended study exchange in South Africa at the University of Cape Town. This gave Duncan valuable insight into developing economies and the forces that impact on them.

In his address to the students, Duncan acknowledged the impact that Lindisfarne had had on his success and encouraged the boys to make the most of their opportunities while at school. He also highlighted two factors that he considered had contributed to his success. The first of these was his willingness to ask for help and act on the advice that he was given by more experienced people. This was particularly relevant when he started applying for American universities and needed a lot of help completing the complicated application process. The other factor in his success that Duncan considered important was his involvement with the Duke of Edinburgh scheme, especially the service element of this scheme. This gave him a wide range of experience and an awareness of the importance of giving back to the community.

We look forward to hearing of everything that Duncan achieves in the future and wish him the best of luck with all his endeavours.

Article added: Thursday 14 November 2019