Top of the class: IOP honours best physics Highers students

Institute of Physics News

11 November 2009

The Institute of Physics (IOP) will today be celebrating the success of nine students who scored 100% in this year’s Highers and Advanced Highers physics exams.

The students, who come from different schools across Scotland, will be honoured for their outstanding achievement and rewarded for their hard work at The Royal Society of Chemistry’s annual Science and the Parliament event in Edinburgh.

Neil Henderson from Thurso High School in Thurso, Yifeng Song from Gryffe High School in Houston, Laura Douglas from Linlithgow Academy in Linlithgow and Owen Mitchell from Stewart’s Melville College in Edinburgh all achieved top marks.

Fellow top scorer Jennifer Millar from St Aloysius College in Glasgow was only 16 when we she sat her Highers. She is now studying Advanced Highers physics, chemistry and maths with the aim of going on to study medicine next year.

Charles L Macmillan from Cults Academy in Aberdeen also passed with 100% and is now studying natural sciences at the University of Cambridge, while Thomas Shinton from The Edinburgh Rudolf Steiner School will be travelling to Ghana and Australia after Christmas before studying civil engineering at Glasgow University in 2010.

Since scoring top marks in his physics exam Steven Welsh from Blairgowrie High School, Blairgowrie, has moved on to study mechanical engineering at Strathclyde University, while Callum Vipond from Boroughmuir High School in Edinburgh is now also studying at the University of Cambridge.

Alison McLure, IOP National Officer in Scotland said, “Congratulations to all the students receiving their IOP awards today. It’s great news that so many Scottish students have achieved top marks.

“Physics-based industries in Scotland rely on physics literate students entering the workforce. The nine top scorers as well as the other 9,000 or so students who took their Highers physics this year will know that a decent grounding in physics is going to stand them in very good stead, whatever it is they decide to do in the future.”

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