Sunset panorama over ridgelines and a sea of cloud.

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. Pelion issues an accredited diploma with a conventional transcript (GPA and course list) alongside the Mastery Transcript. Students also graduate with external qualifications — A-levels or APs, and the AQA EPQ — chosen around their university aspirations.

In a group of ten, friendships matter, and a falling-out can feel particularly consequential. Admissions at Pelion is about building a team. Our selection process considers each student’s maturity, consideration for others, openness to feedback, and willingness to contribute. We seek different personalities and perspectives, with a shared commitment to living and working well together.

Five field faculty accompany each cohort of ten, providing close supervision, individual mentorship, and active facilitation of group life. Shared duties, rotating leadership, private check-ins, and guided discussions give students regular practice in cooperation and resolving disagreements. Faculty attend to exclusion, unhealthy group dynamics, and emerging tensions, and intervene early.

Pelion’s smaller cohort is better placed to mitigate the social risks of conventional school life: political polarisation, public shaming, pressure to conform, and tensions around gender and relationships. Students learn to disagree respectfully, reconsider their views, respect personal boundaries, and take responsibility for their behavior. Bullying and harassment require a clear adult response.

A small cohort cannot eliminate social risk, but gives us the opportunity—and the responsibility—to know each student well and address difficulties with sustained attention.

Pelion is partnered with education researchers to measure student growth on validated external instruments. One of our founding advisors is Deputy Head of the Education Faculty at the University of Cambridge. We will publish our results following the graduation of our first cohort.

No. Pelion is an expeditionary high school for ages 17–19: a continuous curriculum, graded transcripts, recognised external qualifications, and a faculty.

Expedition camps, community lodges, homestays, small group houses. Between terms, students are home — about 40 percent of the two-year calendar, in scheduled breaks and study weeks.

It varies by block. Field terms mix expedition travel, research, Core seminars, daily debriefs, protected journaling time, and collaborative storytelling production. Home breaks are for online coursework, rest, and family. See the calendar.

Yes, on a schedule that varies by block. Cities and lodges have normal connectivity; remote expeditions carry satellite communication for scheduled check-ins and emergencies. Unstructured screen time is deliberately scarce.

Our educator to student ratio is 1:2. Each cohort of 10 students is led by a core team of five field staff, to cover the range of teaching and operational expertise. Pelion faculty have the real-world expertise and accomplishments to teach, mentor and inspire our students. Teaching and counseling are personalised.

Local teachers, researchers, and licensed technical guides are paid partners additional to this core team. A-level and AP courses are taught by online teachers of record.

Pelion is building a program for grades 9 and 10. Please get in touch for more information.

Pelion's founders taught the IB Diploma for most of their careers and know it is not a good fit for Pelion's extended time in the field. This is a design decision and not a judgement on the IB. Pelion's accredited diploma, A-level/APs, SATs, and EPQ qualifications support students' university applications.

Still have a question? Write to us and one of the founders will reply.

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