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A leading independent traditional high school for boys

INTRODUCTION

Founded in 1921, Kearsney College is one of the country’s top independent traditional boys’ schools, renowned for its balance and all-round excellence.

Kearsney’s beautiful 125-acre estate is located in Botha’s Hill, on the edge of the Valley of a Thousand Hills, midway between Durban and Pietermaritzburg and a thirty-minute drive from either city.

GENERAL INFORMATION

Academics - the number one priority

The academic ethos at the College is as competitive as the one enjoyed in sport and cultural arenas.

The College has an outstanding record of academic achievement in the IEB Matriculation Examinations. There has been a 100% pass rate for over a decade, with over 80% of boys receiving an A, B or C aggregate and a quarter receiving A aggregates. Our small class sizes, highly qualified staff and the emphasis on the use of state-of-the-art technology in the classrooms and laboratories is reflected in our boys’ excellent results.

Kearsney provides a dynamic environment to promote sporting excellence, sportsmanship and healthy competition for all. The SportZone at Kearsney has been developed to provide outstanding facilities to complement our well established High Performance programme. The SportZone includes a 672sq metre weights gym where individualised conditioning programmes are provided for our sportsmen.

The indoor centre provides seven cricket nets with full run-ups and four bowling machines, indoor hockey and soccer pitches, and two basketball courts. Adjacent to the indoor centre are two pools, one heated, overlooking the magnificent Alverstone Valley.

There are more than 20 sporting venues on campus. Professional coaches are employed for training and developing the boys’ skills and fitness. Some of South Africa’s great sportsmen are Kearsney Old Boys and are involved in coaching clinics at the College from time to time.

Sportsmen are in their element with the large variety of sports on offer at the College: basketball, canoeing, cricket, cross country, golf, hockey, indoor hockey, rugby, soccer, squash, swimming , tennis and water polo.

The world-famous Kearsney College Choir have been crowned World Champions on four occasions. Since 2000 Kearsney has won fifteen gold medals and seven silver medals at the World Choir Games, the largest choir competition in the world. The Choir performs on the world’s great stages and has twice been selected to represent Africa at the United Nations headquarters in Geneva and New York. 

In 2020 the Kearsney College Choir was ranked 22nd in the world by Interkultur (5th in the world in the Pop category and 14th in Folklore). In keeping with the College’s commitment to a balanced education, an extensive club and cultural programme is offered at Kearsney, with up to thirty-six clubs available to the boys.

Kearsney offers its 650 boys flexible weekly or termly boarding and day scholar options - catering to the needs of the modern family.

Most of our boarders are weekly boarders, opting for a mix of family time and the experience, structure, fun and brotherhood of boarding.

Kearsney attracts pupils from all over the country and the world, and full (termly) boarding is also offered.

Transport is provided on Monday mornings for boarders from Richards Bay, Umtunzini, Ballito, Umhlanga, Hilton and Pietermaritzburg. A return bus for day scholars leaves daily from Berea, with pick up points from Westville to Botha’s Hill.