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We'll put this phenomenon in context, and list the most influential people who came of age at Canadian private schools.

Contents:

• Introduction
  • Socialization at Canadian private schools
  • The development of a self-concept
  • Alumni networks
  • The next generation
• List of alumni by field
  • Academics and research
  • Arts
  • Business
  • Education
  • Humanitarian
  • Legal
  • Medicine
  • Military
  • Politics
  • Sports

Introduction

The connection between power and independent education was identified as far back as 1965 when John Porter wrote The Vertical Mosaic, a landmark treatise on the sociology of class in Canada. While only 6 percent of students attended private schools, he pointed out, 34 percent of the country's economic elite came up through the private system.

Fifty years later, it seems not much has changed. National enrollment has held steady around 6 percent. And while private schools are a great deal more accessible now to students of varying economic backgrounds, they still appear to produce a disproportionate number of Canada's leaders and difference-makers.

Reading through the alumni list below is like reading a Canadian 'Who's Who'

Indeed, reading through the list of alumni below is like reading a Canadian "Who's Who". Ministers and Viceroys, Rhodes Scholars, Olympians and sports stars, Members of the Order of Canada, Nobel Prize winners, inventors, entrepreneurs, Fortune 50 CEOs, Oscar winners, military generals, humanitarians — there is no peak left unclaimed.

Socialization at Canadian private schools

But what explains this?

It's possible private schools merely correlate with the success of their alumni, and don't cause it. Private school students might succeed no matter the school they attend, and benefit instead from the educated and financially secure families they have tended (historically) to come from.

But it's difficult to dismiss schools' role out of hand: if the home environment is so influential in a child's development — whether through attitudes and values passed down from parents, physical resources, or social connections — then surely the school environment and community plays a role too. It's hard to accept that socialization ceases to count when children step onto a school's grounds.

Porter thought private schools gave students both the values and connections for assuming leadership positions later in life.

Porter delved particularly into the role of values and beliefs — they "are as important as technical competence" in predicting future socio-economic status, he argued — and thought private schools gave students both the values and connections for assuming leadership positions later in life. 

Private schools allowed students to form friendships with future difference-makers – to be surrounded by other ambitious, upwardly mobile students. All the while — whether they knew it or not — students received an education in how leaders think and act. In this manner, Porter argued, private school students became members of a certain "class". They identified with one another — sharing fundamental beliefs — and tended to become leaders, together, in Canadian society. 

Private schools thus became hothouses, of sorts, for ambition and excellence. And alumni had an easier time succeeding because they had an immediate rapport with those already in power.

The development of a self-concept

Porter's thinking dovetails nicely into modern research on the relationship between academic self-concept and academic outcomes. There is evidence students' self-concept — meaning their beliefs around both their role in society and their abilities as learners — plays a significant part in actually determining their ability and motivation to learn.

Could being in Porter's "private school class" — or just being in a supportive environment that truly values excellence and achievement — expand one's self-concept? And, if so, could this expanded self-concept lead to greater achievement down the road?

We carried with us a set of expectations ... Our instruction was to rise as high as we could: Robertson Davies

Daniela Duriavig, who has a daughter at University of Toronto Schools, certainly thinks so. She says the most pronounced—and unexpected—effect of the school has been on her daughter's expanding notion of what’s possible. Since transferring to the school, her daughter raised her expectations: motivated by the sight of clear, concrete paths to doing, literally, anything she wants.

Being surrounded by quality peers—in a community that values excellence, and with countless successful alumni in a variety of fields to model oneself after — can have that effect. In fact, Duriavig’s story is pretty typical. We hear stories like it all the time.

A number of us here at Our Kids are fans of Paul Graham's essay, "Cities and Ambition". Graham talks about how great cities send subtle messages about what you should do better. Different cities send different messages, however. To accomplish something great, he argues, you need to place yourself somewhere that reinforces the messages you want reinforced. It's a great analogy for what often happens when kids switch schools, and suddenly find themselves in an environment that supports their personality and drives.

In the same way cities send subtle messages about "measuring up", so too do many private schools. Robertson Davies, one of Canada's most celebrated authors and a graduate of Upper Canada College, spoke of the mindset instilled in students by the school:

Alumni networks

Successful school alumni don’t just provide students and younger alumni inspiration and an expanded self-concept: they also provide direct contacts, mentorship, and support. This support often carries through a graduate’s career.

The 'pay it back' mindset is strong amongst school alumni. It’s a big part of private school culture.

The "pay it back" mindset is strong amongst school alumni: it is a big part of private school culture. The desire to help one's fellow alumni runs deep, and the networks at many Canadian private schools are notoriously tight. Young alumni often have friends in high places willing to open doors for them when needed.

Sometimes the school takes an active role in facilitating this networking. Looking to get a hold in Silicon Valley? Not a problem: the school will put you in touch with a venture capitalist from the area who is looking to mentor someone. Want to get into banking? The school will help you meet the bank president. Looking to join a humanitarian mission? How about a meeting with the president of a leading charity overseas?

The next generation

Will this track record of private school grads continue? If academic performance is any indicator, there seems reason to think it will.

A 2014 study by Canadian Accredited Independent Schools (CAIS) showed students from CAIS schools are averaging 83.2% in first-year university — an "A" average. That's actually remarkable: first-year university is notorious for its grade drop, and the drop is particularly steep at the top universities CAIS students attend (67% is a typical first-year average at many undergraduate programs).

Canadian private school grads are also gaining admissions at an impressive rate to some of the top international schools, like Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, and Oxford.

Private schools appear to be preparing their students well for further studies, then. How this translates into actual contributions to society — whether in science, business, the arts, politics, etc — remains to be seen.

But these students have more than simply a strong academic foundation: they were also socialized into a group of ambitious peers — inculcated with time-tested values and hooked into strong networks. Graduates will capitalize on these assets over time, and the cycle will probably continue.

List of alumni by field

The following are the most noteworthy graduates from the top private schools in Canada we cover on our website, from coast to coast.

For a narrower, more localized view, see our alumni page for Ontario, British Columbia and Western Canada, or Quebec and the Maritimes.

You can use the tables below to sort alumni by the school they attended. This list includes graduates of both day and boarding schools, including Montessori, language-immersion, Christian, gifted, AP, and IB schools.

Academics and research

Arts

Business

Education

Humanitarian

Legal

Medicine

Military

Politics

Sports