Posted: Friday 29 August 2008
Sixth-year Hutchesons' pupil Calum Macdonald was among the top five candidates in A level Business Studies and the top ten pupils in A level History, according to Edexcel, the UK's largest examination awarding body.
Calum sat the History and Business Studies exams earlier this summer at Hutchesons' and the results show that out of 21,308 History and 23,574 Business Studies candidates, Calum achieved two of the highest overall marks.
Jerry Jarvis, Edexcel's Managing Director, said: "This is a tremendous achievement and testament to the hard work students put into preparing for their exams. We send our congratulations to Calum."
Dr Rona Gaffney, who is Head of History at Hutchesons', is delighted with his success. "Calum's success," she says, "is good news for him, for the department and for the school and reflected in the fact that he has gained a place to study Law at Downing College at the University of Cambridge."
Calum is modest about his achievements, but says that doing well has been "very satisfying." Before he takes up his Cambridge place, he will spend an academic year at Pomona College in California, as the recipient of the prestigious Downing College/Pomona College Exchange Scholarship. Calum also won the national final of the Historical Association's ‘Great Debate' in March this year and was jointly awarded the Hutchesons' Boys' Dux medal for the most outstanding academic achiever in 2008.