Our Boarding Experience – A Fulfilling Life, a Structured Education
Most of our students return home on Friday afternoon, returning to campus by Sunday evening. Those who remain over the weekend from time to time enjoy being together, heading for the sunny mountain slopes, listening to their favourite music, or enjoying a good read.
At times spirited, at times absorbed in conversation, they study together, play indoors and outdoors, and engage together in winter or summer sport. Learning, living, and sharing life in community during term make for a rich boarding experience.Soon they’re letting loose, soon they’re deep in conversation, learning, going out, doing snow or summer sports. And off we go into a new week – learning, living and working together.
A Place to Call Home
At Stiftsschule Engelberg, we are committed to providing care and welfare for each student, thus creating a nurturing environment that boarders come to value, where they develop a sense of belonging, and come to enjoy living alongside us.
Boarding at Stiftsschule Engelberg
- The boarding school was completely renovated in 2018.
- We are a small boarding school, completely renovated in 2018, and offering excellent provisions for a maximum of 85 girls and boys.
- For our younger boarders we provide rooms for two students.
- Boarders in Year 3 of Secondary School, as well as those in the final four years of Gymnasium (high school), are accommodated in private single rooms.
- The girls’ rooms, renovated in 2018, are located in the west wing of our boarding school.
- The boys’ rooms are in the east wing, which was renovated in 2014.
- We take pride in offering excellent dining facilities, where our students, our boarding house educators, and some members of the teaching staff enjoy healthy meals together.
- For our girls and boys, we provide both separate and shared social and recreational spaces.
- Both enjoy coming together for choir singing and orchestral music.
Hear from One of Our Students
We asked a student to share her experience of becoming a boarder. This is what she has to say:
Our Pedagogy
Living alongside their peers generates a fresh and dynamic momentum for many adolescents, often acting as a catalyst for their personal development. In this shared environment, our students become more focused and successful learners, while gradually developing social confidence and growing into well-rounded young individuals.
In the process, they naturally assume greater responsibility for themselves and for others. They come to recognize their own strengths and areas for growth, creating space for opportunity, development, and contribution.
A Learning Community
Our students are encouraged to become active and valued members of both the boarding school and the wider school. They are aware of the important role they play in helping their community flourish. Students engage actively and creatively in the Book Club, the Abbey Choir, the Orchestra, Theatre, and a wide range of sports. Above all, they look out for one another in the everyday life of the school.
Our Boarding House Educators
They are utterly dedicated in ensuring that communal living runs smoothly: our boarding house educators. You can turn to them whenever you need support – whether you’re feeling homesick or simply need a word of encouragement.
In instances of conflict, our boarding house educators intervene promptly. They mediate disputes with integrity and clarity, fostering an environment of mutual respect among all boarders.
A Formative Period
During their time at our boarding school, students share daily life with each other throughout a formative stage of their development. Coming from a variety of backgrounds, they live, study, and work together, growing into well-rounded individuals who excel in their personal growth.
Our Benedictine Tradition
We uphold the time-honoured rhythm of the day as outlined in the Rule of Saint Benedict. This Daily Routine, proven over centuries, nurtures well-being, a sense of purpose, and academic excellence – making communal living and learning all the more enriching.
Learn more about Day-to-Day Student Care, our Pastoral Care, the Secondary School, and our Gymnasium. You may also wish to read the interview with Father Dr. Andri Tuor OSB, Boarding House Educator, available here.
Contact for Questions
“Whether your enquiry is simple or more detailed – regarding admission or arranging a visit to experience life at our school first-hand – please do not hesitate to telephone me. I am here to assist you personally.” – Alexandra Bissig, School Management Assistant and Student Administration
Support
Boarders are supervised by six members of staff (four women and two men), who are responsible for issues arising in daily life. The school’s Pastoral Care also offers support to the young people in the boarding house. Not least it accompanies them in their quest to develop their own identity, in their need for fellowship and in search of God. Moreover, they are supported in cases where they lose their way or endure conflict or crisis.
The boarding school is housed in the Kollegium building of the Stiftsschule. The boys live on the 2014 renovated east wing. Accommodations are double rooms (for the younger students) or single rooms. The girls occupy the west wing which has been renovated in 2018.
Living together in a community promotes one’s ability to work in a team, and offers insights into one’s own strengths and weaknesses along with an understanding of others. Homeroom classes and boarding groups stay together for several years; this, together with the relatively small size of the Stiftsschule Engelberg, helps to promote its friendly atmosphere. Friendships formed here often last long after students have left the school.
Do not hesitate to contact us!
Head of Boarding
Our Head of Boarding Franziska Bachmann Pfister and her team are available to students as reliable contact persons in everyday life.
Admission
Here you will find all further information on the admission process at Stiftsschule Engelberg.