Cornish lass is in top 1 per cent of students in the WORLD

A Redruth student is in the top 1 per cent of global students thanks to achieving full marks on her two-year course. Aimee Paull is the joint highest achiever of all time at Truro College.

Aimee scored an unbeatable 45 out of 45 points on her International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma course at Truro College, a score equivalent to five A*s at A level.

Picking up her results this week and celebrating with the rest of her cohort and lecturers as they gathered at college one last time, Aimee said: “I was quite nervous leading up to results day and I wasn’t sure if I’d get what I needed to get into university, but I’m very happy.”

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The result places Aimee in the top 1 per cent in the world, and 2024 marks another incredible year of success for the IB Diploma cohort at Truro College. The cohort achieved a 92 per cent pass rate, with 77 per cent of students scoring over 30, at an average point score of 34.2 - this is well above the global average point score of 30.3.

Truro College is the only provider of the IB Diploma in Cornwall. The IB requires students to excel in a broad range of subjects, engage in critical thinking, and complete a series of extended essays and projects. Achieving a perfect score is a rare accomplishment, highlighting Aimee's extraordinary capabilities.

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“My favourite part of studying the IB was the people I met along the way,” said Aimee. “There’s a lot of opportunities to try new things and gain new experiences, especially with CAS (creativity, action and service), which is a part of the IB where students are involved in a range of different activities and in a single project of their choice.”

Aimee, the joint highest achiever of all time at Truro College, is now heading to the University of Cambridge to study Modern and Medieval Languages, with a focus on Spanish and Portuguese.

Aimee offered some words of advice to students hoping to follow in her footsteps: “Prioritise your time, work hard and surround yourself with like-minded people.”

In addition to Aimee's success, also collecting her results was student Kaeya Brown. Originally from Uganda, Kaeya moved to Cornwall after attending 7Hills International School in Kampala.

Kaeya said: “I chose the IB because I found that the teaching style was very similar to that at my international school.” Kaeya scored an impressive 38 points out of 45 and is now heading to the University of Exeter to study Psychology.

Speaking on her experience with the IB, Kaeya added: “Honestly, it’s the best thing I could’ve done, coming from Uganda. The cohort as a whole are incredible people, and the people I’ve met I’ve formed incredible friendships with. The teachers have been so incredibly supportive that it’s made my whole experience very worthwhile.”

Other notable student successes include Alex Colclough achieving her Oxford University offer with 41 points and Poppy Geyman also heading to Oxford with 40 points.

Angie Liversedge, IB Coordinator at Truro and Penwith College, said: “This year’s cohort of IB students have achieved some excellent results. Our average points score of 34.2 reflects the exceptional hard work shown by our students and is well above the global average of 30.32.

"It is therefore not surprising that they are sought after by top universities and this year our students have gained places at competitive universities such as Oxford, Cambridge, LSE, Edinburgh, Bath, Southampton, Exeter, and Warwick. They will go on to study a wide range of degree choices including Modern and Medieval Languages, History, Anthropology, Pharmacology, Economics and Finance, Psychology and Dental Surgery.

"Other students are choosing to enter careers immediately such as accountancy and the military, demonstrating the flexible and diverse nature of the IB course. The students have exemplified the very best qualities of the International Baccalaureate, with not only their academic excellence but also by being compassionate, open-minded, and principled learners. I am truly proud of every one of them.”

The college is still accepting applications for students to start in September. Visit truro-penwith.ac.uk to start your journey.