University of St Andrews Business School and the Rank Foundation Summer School
Ten 16 and 17-year-old pupils from across the UK spent a week in St Andrews last month as the Business School piloted the first Rank Foundation and University of St Andrews Business School Summer School 2025.
The Rank Foundation is an independent charitable trust founded in 1953 by flour miller and film maker Lord Arthur Rank. The trust supports communities across the UK by encouraging leadership, enterprise and strong local networks for social good.
Professor Tobias Jung, director of the Centre for the Study of Philanthropy and Public Good (CSPPG), Business School colleagues Professors Carole Elliot and Paul Hibbert, and Drs Anna Brown and Gosia Mitka, and former Dundee City Council Chief Executive Dr David Dorward MBE designed and delivered the programme. It blended academic insights with hands-on experiences to demystify university life and nurture leadership, enterprise and philanthropy skills.
Participants tackled creative challenges on campus, including an aircraft engine fire scenario that stimulated ethical entrepreneurial discussion, explored urban regeneration projects in Dundee and traced Andrew Carnegie’s philanthropic legacy during a visit to Dunfermline.
The initiative aligns with the University’s Access and Participation Strategy by giving talented pupils, many of whom would not normally consider St Andrews, a supportive taste of university study. It also builds on CSPPG’s long‑standing relationship with the Foundation, which has already invested over £170,000 in research and doctoral training in philanthropy.
Feedback was overwhelmingly positive. One student said of the week, “The focus on philanthropy added another layer, highlighting the importance of empathy and community impact in leadership roles, leaving me with a richer, more nuanced understanding.” While another left “with an educated plan for who I want to be and how I’m going to get there”.
Plans are underway to expand the summer school next year. Colleagues interested in supporting future cohorts should contact Professor Jung ([email protected]).