The country’s best all-girls day schools have built formidable reputations for dispensing not merely rigorous academics but also co-curricular, sports and life skills education to prepare girl children for leadership positions in society

India’s all-girls schools are valuable national assets. In a still largely conservative and patriarchal society where gender discrimination is rife, girls-only schools perform an important public service by dispensing quality K-12 education to girl children who would otherwise be denied it for religious and cultural reasons. Moreover, the country’s most respected girls day schools have built formidable reputations in their host cities for delivering not merely rigorous academics but also co-curricular, sports and life skills education to prepare girl children for leadership positions in society.

Therefore, since 2007 all-girls day schools are ranked separately and distinctly from co-ed and all-boys institutions in the annual EW India School Rankings (EWISR). It’s important to note that the broad category of all-girls day schools — sub-divided last year to create a new category of vintage legacy schools (over 90 years of age) — comprises 89 institutions (cf. 52 boys schools) indicating continuous demand for gender-segregated education for girl children.

In EWISR 2023-24, the league table of India’s best all-girls day schools has undergone a major makeover (for vintage legacy girls schools league table, see p.354). The 18,928 sample respondents comprising parents, teachers, educators and senior students interviewed by the Delhi-based Centre for Forecasting & Research (C fore) have promoted Rajmata Krishna Kumari Girls Public School, Jodhpur (RKKGPS), ranked #2 in 2022-23, to joint #1 with Carmel Convent School, Chandigarh, ranked #4 last year. Sacred Heart Sr. Sec School, Chandigarh, ranked #1 in 2022-23, has slipped to #2. Modern High School for Girls, Kolkata has retained its #3 ranking of last year.

Neera Singh, principal of the CBSE-affiliated RKKGPS (estb.1992), is “thrilled” that EWISR survey respondents have awarded the school 1+ rank. “Over the past two years, we have taken deliberate steps to improve on all 14 EWISR parameters, especially those on which we had received low scores. Therefore, it’s very satisfying that the collective efforts of the management, teachers and students have paid off,” says Singh, an alumna of Rajasthan and SNDT, Mumbai universities who has 25 years of teaching experience in schools countrywide, appointed principal of RKKGPS in 2008.

Singh derives special pride that RKKGPS is awarded highest score on the parameters of infrastructure provision, parental involvement, community service, special needs education and sports education. “Community service is an important focus area for us. Our girl children manage a sanitary napkins manufacturing unit on campus and also participate in several rural women empowerment programmes. Sports education is a top priority with 17 games offered and all girl children compulsorily required to play one individual and one team game. It’s our focus on empowering girl children not just with academic education but also with skills of communication, teamwork, confidence, resilience, and leadership that distinguishes RKKGPS,” says Singh, who adds that the school recently inaugurated a 400-seat air-conditioned auditorium. Sited on a 6.5-acre campus in the historical city of Jodhpur, RKKGPS has 1,685 girl children including 250 boarders mentored by 150 teachers, on its muster rolls.

Likewise, Sr. Shanta Fernandes, principal of Carmel Convent, Chandigarh (estb.1959), is delighted this CBSE-affiliated school is promoted from #4 last year to #1 in 2023-24. “The dedication of our faculty, students and staff has borne fruit. At Carmel Convent, our focus is on training and empowering teachers rigorous academics balanced with enabling co-curricular education for a holistic learning experience. That’s why I’m grateful that we have been awarded highest score for faculty competence, academic reputation and co-curricular education. We will continue on the path of excellence and work towards realising our mission of Inspire, Empower and Excel,” says Sr. Fernandes. Currently, the school has an enrolment of 2,100 students and 82 teachers.

Beyond the Top 3, there’s minor change in the Top 10 seating order with the exception of Uttam School for Girls, Ghaziabad which has leapfrogged to #5 from #9 last year. Maharani Gayatri Devi Girls School, Jaipur has inched up to #4 (#5 in 2022-23) as has Carmel Convent School, Delhi to #6 (7) and NASR School, Khairatabad, Hyderabad to #7 (6). Walsingham House School, Mumbai has retained its #8 rank followed by DAV Girls Senior Secondary School, Lloyds Road, Chennai at #9 (10) and Presentation Convent Sr. Sec School, Jammu (#8) jointly ranked #10 with Sushila Birla Girls School, Kolkata (11).

The steady and spectacular rise of Uttam School for Girls, Ghaziabad (estb.1995) in EWISR from #19 in 2021-22 to #9 in 2022-23 and #5 this year has delighted principal Sharmila Raheja, who credits this big promotion to the school’s “supportive management, competent teachers and diligent students who are constantly learning, improving and setting new achievement goals”.

“I am especially pleased that Uttam School is ranked #1 on the critical parameter of individual attention to students. This is an important parameter for us because we strongly believe that all children can learn and develop their full potential if provided individual attention and mentoring. Our classroom strength is capped at 30 with every girl child encouraged to participate in academic, co-curricular and sports activities within a wider environment and culture of empowerment and opportunity. Moreover, our high scores for academic reputation and co-curricular education indicate that our teachers are doing an excellent job of dispensing balanced education to prepare girl children for leadership roles in society,” says Raheja. Currently, the CBSE-affiliated Uttam School has an enrolment of 996 students and 90 teachers.

Within the 59-strong all-girls day schools league table of 2023-24, several institutions have risen in public esteem. Among them are Notre Dame Academy, Patna to #12 (16), Maheshwari Girls Public School, Jaipur #18 (22), St. Joseph High School, Pashan, Pune #21 (28), Auxilium Convent School, Kolkata #33 (39) and Pragya Girls, Indore #39 (45).

A caveat: please note that schools modestly ranked in the national league table tend to be highly ranked in their host states, some of which are larger and more populous than European countries. For instance, Arya Mahila NM Model School, Varanasi, ranked India #15 is the #1 school of Varanasi and Uttar Pradesh (pop.235 million); Holy Child Sr. Sec School, Sonipat, ranked #35 nationally is the #1 girls day school of Sonipat and Haryana (27 million); and Aspee Kanya Vidyalaya, Bilimora, ranked #25 all-India is the top-ranked day girls school of Navsari and Gujarat (70 million).

For the complete table: EW India School Rankings 2022-23 – Top & best schools in India

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