Boarding

Nelson College Boarding School accommodates many international students and students throughout New Zealand.

From our understanding of what it means to be a young man today, we endeavour to provide a supportive extended-family environment that encourages academic, emotional and physical development.

The three boarding houses of Nelson College are Rutherford, Barnicoat and Fell. They are situated in the park-like grounds of the college close to the centre of Nelson city. Students live in Barnicoat and Fell houses in 2018. An onsite dining room and fully staffed sanatorium complete the facilities on hand. Each house is supervised by a resident housemaster and a team of staff who work hard to meet the needs of each individual. There is a strong sense of unity in each house.

We welcome to our boarding community students from New Zealand and further afield from the Pacific Islands, Asia and Europe. This diversity makes up the ‘International Boarding Community’ at the heart of college life.

Boarding students at Nelson College enjoy a varied lifestyle with relative freedom within defined boundaries. Full participation is encouraged in all aspects of boarding and college life.

Co-curricular boarding scholarships are available. For information and criteria please contact Headmaster Gary O’Shea.

Keeping you informed

We like to keep in close contact with our Boarding families.  Twice a year, in Terms 1 and 3 we look forward to our traditional Boarders weekends which include parent-teacher interviews, concerts, sporting events and commemoration services. You will be kept in touch with regular boarding newsletters and the school newsletter is produced twice each term.  We encourage parents to check this website often for updates, daily notices, information and photos of school events.

How to Apply

We welcome all boarding enquiries and if you would like to apply go to our Enrolment page. Complete the online enroment and we will be in contact with you.

All applicants and their parents will have an interview as part of the boarding enrolment process and an offer of place will be confirmed after a successful interview.