The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award (DofE)
THE DUKE OF EDINBURGH’S INTERNATIONAL AWARD
At POWIIS, the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award offers students a valuable opportunity to grow beyond the classroom through challenge, service and adventure. Open to students aged 14 and above, the Award supports young people to develop confidence, resilience and independence in real-world settings.
Students complete a combination of community service, physical activity, skill development and outdoor expeditions, with experiences taking place across Malaysia and occasionally overseas. Along the way, they learn to work collaboratively, manage responsibility and respond positively to challenges.
Guided by trained Award Leaders, the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award is a well-established and highly regarded part of school life at POWIIS, providing students with experiences that are both enriching and memorable.
Why Join the DoE Award at POWIIS?
The Award empowers students to:
- Build resilience and confidence through adventurous outdoor challenges.
- Serve their community and make meaningful contributions through volunteering.
- Develop life-long skills in leadership, teamwork, and goal setting.
- Explore passions through activities that encourage creativity, fitness, and independence.
We currently only run Bronze and Silver level Awards, with over 90% of our participants successfully achieving their accreditation. Next Academic year we begin our Gold Award program offering the ultimate challenge for our most committed students.
The Award Journey
Each level includes four sections designed to promote personal growth:
- Skill: Learn or develop a personal talent or interest—from coding to creative writing.
- Physical Recreation: Improve health and fitness through sports or movement-based activities.
- Voluntary Service: Make a difference by helping others, the environment, or the community.
- Adventurous Journey (AJ): Work as a team to explore the outdoors on challenging, supervised expeditions. Bronze Adventurous Journeys take students overnight into local jungle environments, while Silver participants take on more demanding challenges, such as multi-day kayaking expeditions across Malaysia’s largest freshwater bodies.
Activities and Opportunities
Through POWIIS’s extensive Extra-Curricular Activities (ECA) programme, students have a wide choice of activities that support their Award sections, including:
- Environmental projects: Coastal Guardians, Rethink Waste, Earth Keepers, Wild Earth.
- Community action: Paws & Purpose, Operation Donation, Fix It Forward.
- Creativity & skills: 3D Printing & CAD Club, Creative Writing, Robotics, Music/Movie.
- Physical recreation: Running Club, Aquatic Sports, Gym, Volleyball, Football.
These opportunities ensure the Award is deeply integrated into the life of our school and the community we serve.
The Award team at POWIIS
Led by Mr. Simon Chandler, Award Coordinator, the programme is supported by:
- Experienced teams of Award Leaders for each Award level.
- Qualified Supervisors and Assessors, ensuring expedition safety and quality learning experiences.
- GAC Adventures, providing logistical and safety support.