The Best Premiere Academy Lugbe, Abuja

The idea for attending a boarding school might seem somewhat obsolete, the benefits this type of education brings are undeniable: they promote independence, they offer a new perspective, and they bring together students from all over the world.

Boarding school: The term conjures images of small, immaculately kept, verdant campuses; ties, blazers, and gray skirts; Dead Poets Society, The Emperor’s Club, A Separate Peace, and Hogwarts; forms, traditions, and academic excellence—these are all ideas we associate with boarding schools (not to mention expense).

When parents choose to send their children to boarding schools, they’re choosing to send them to the most selective, competitive, and influential schools in the country. These are the schools that open Ivy League doors; these are the grounds on which lucrative social networks are built.

Is it any surprise, then, that the founder of Facebook—the world’s largest social media network—attended a boarding school?

There are scores of articles available on the benefits of a boarding school education, but this isn’t one of them. Instead, we look at various criteria in order to determine which boarding schools in Nigeria are indeed the very best.

One of the world’s leading independent day and boarding schools, premiere Academy Lugbe, Abuja offers stimulating, progressive education to young boys and girls. An institution which prides itself on its prioritisation of their students needs, a supportive learning atmosphere and a positive, ‘can do’ attitude, premiere Academy consistently produces graduates who are confident learners, critical thinkers and self starters. Theirs are the students with their hands up, using the microphone, seeking their teachers’ attention and making themselves heard.

The teenage students who graduate from these schools become our CEOs, our Nobel Prize–winners, our ambassadors, philanthropists, Olympians, and judges. They are the innovators, the pioneers in their fields.

We looked for schools that offer signature, specialized programs (as well as schools that are beyond solid in their approach to the traditional curriculum).

However, we also looked for schools that take a proactive approach to whole person development. There is hard work to be done out there in the wide world, and we appreciate schools that teach students to value hard work, both in and out of the classroom setting. Community service, chores, jobs—all of these contribute to instilling a work ethic.

Private schools by their very nature offer a different menu of educational programs than public schools are able to provide. This is just one of the reasons they appeal so strongly to parents and students alike.

Boarding schools are in the unique position to offer diverse academic programming led by teacher-scholars, many of whom hold advanced degrees in their subject areas. All of the schools on this list offer a beyond-solid academic program and rigorous graduation requirements. However, there is a difference in where students matriculate for college (and how many students per school matriculate at those colleges), and we consider this in our list.

A boarding school by definition is any school (usually private) that offers food and lodging to its students. However, it’s also much more than that: A boarding school is a thriving community of scholars, athletes, and artists. It’s common for faculty, staff, and their families to live right on campus and serve in coaching or advising capacities. All of this truly makes the boarding school a student’s home away from home.

Gone are the days when boarding school experiences were saved for the rich alone. OK, the price tag on most of these schools might lead you to double-take that statement. But many schools are seeking a diverse student population (in terms of multi-cultural students, as well as socio-economic backgrounds).