The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award (DofE)
THE DUKE OF EDINBURGH’S INTERNATIONAL AWARD
At the Prince of Wales Island International School (POWIIS), the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award is much more than a certificate—it’s a transformative journey of growth, service, and adventure.
Open to students aged 14 and above, the Award encourages every participant to challenge themselves, pursue their passions, and develop as responsible, compassionate global citizens.
Our Award Programme reflects the POWIIS mission to nurture curiosity, compassion, and mutual respect while preparing our students to become the leaders of a better tomorrow.
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.