Opportunity knocks for a cohort of future leaders.
Original Article by Shashi Baltutis appeared in The Advertiser, Thursday 30 July 2025. A version of the article is also available online at news.com.au.
From hosting global conferences for students and teachers to sharing ideas with their counterparts at a sister school in Vietnam, Scotch College has the benefit of worldwide reach.
The co-ed college in Adelaide is ranked 21 in The Advertiser’s list of the top 100 private schools around the country. It is the highest-ranked school in South Australia and one of 20 from around the state to make the list.
Year 12 Scotch boarder Olivia Baker said she was learning “to contribute to something bigger” throughout her education.
Scotch College takes out the top spot due to factors including its progressive facilities, 2024 median ATAR of 89 and high ratio of one staff member for every nine students. It tops the rankings ahead of the two most expensive schools in SA, St Peter’s College and Pembroke School, both of which charge about $33,000 for year 12.
At Scotch, 17-year-old Olivia said through the school’s agriculture farm and sports program, students were encouraged to “explore our passions”.
In October this year, the college will host 100 students and educators from around the world for a week-long conference promoting leadership in young people.
Scotch principal Trent Driver said this would build students’ “capacity to imagine and lead change in their communities in years to come”.
It is one of a string of events with international outreach for the school. Mr Driver travelled to Vietnam in May to congratulate the graduating class of Scotch AGS, a sister college in Ho Chi Minh City in which students study the South Australian Certificate of Education.
Mr Driver said it was “a real honour and privilege” for Scotch to be named the top SA school.
“We have hoped that what we do in Adelaide reflects the best of educational thinking and practice from across the country,” he said.
Scotch College captain Patrick Keenan, 17, said he felt “very fortunate” to have studied at a school which had helped shape him.
“We all come away from Scotch knowing we have a responsibility to give back and the tools to do it,” the year 12 student said.
National ranking: 21. Taking the honours as SA’s top private school in these rankings, Scotch College was founded in 1919 as a Presbyterian boys’ school but has been coeducational since 1972.
