Institut Le Rosey (), commonly referred to as Le Rosey or simply Rosey, is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. They have existed for many centuries, and now extend acr ...

Rolle Rolle () is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Cantons of Switzerland, Canton of Vaud in Switzerland. It was the seat of the district of Rolle (district), Rolle until 2006, when it became part of the district of Nyon District, N ...

, Switzerland. It was founded in 1880 by Paul-Émile Carnal on the site of the 14th-century Château du Rosey in the town of Rolle in the

canton of Vaud Vaud ( ; , ), more formally Canton of Vaud, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of ten districts; its capital city is Lausanne. Its coat of arms bears the motto "Liberté et patrie" on a white-green bicolou ...

. The school also owns a campus in the

ski resort A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter sports. In Europe, most ski resorts are towns or villages in or adjacent to a ski area–a mountainous area with pistes (ski trails) and a ski lift system. In North Am ...

village of

Gstaad Gstaad ( , ) is a town in the German language, German-speaking section of the Canton of Bern in southwestern Switzerland. It is part of the municipality of Saanen and is known as a major ski resort and a popular destination amongst high society ...

in the

canton of Bern The canton of Bern, or Berne (; ; ; ), is one of the Canton of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. Its capital city, Bern, is also the ''de facto'' capital of Switzerland. The bear is the heraldic symbol of the c ...

, to where the student body, faculty and staff move during the months of January through March. In 2015, Christophe Gudin, son of the fourth director of Le Rosey, Philippe Gudin, became the fifth director. Kim Kovacevic is the headmaster. Le Rosey is included in

The Schools Index The Schools Index is an annual publication that lists internationally notable private schools and international schools. Published by Carfax Education, it is often considered a global list of the most prestigious schools of the world. In 2025 Time ...

of the world's 150 best private schools and among top 10 international schools in Switzerland.

Overview

The school offers a

bilingual Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. When the languages are just two, it is usually called bilingualism. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolin ...

and

bicultural Biculturalism in sociology describes the co-existence, to varying degrees, of two originally distinct cultures. Official policy recognizing, fostering, or encouraging biculturalism typically emerges in countries that have emerged from a histo ...

education with the language of instruction being French or English depending on the student's academic program. Students may sit either the

International Baccalaureate The International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), more commonly known as the International Baccalaureate (IB), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the I ...

, the most widely recognised pre-university educational programme, or the

Francophone The Francophonie or Francophone world is the whole body of people and organisations around the world who use the French language regularly for private or public purposes. The term was coined by Onésime Reclus in 1880 and became important a ...

-oriented

French Baccalaureate French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

. To sustain an international atmosphere at Le Rosey, there exists a quota where no more than 10% of the students may come from a single country. The student body, ages 8 through 18, is composed of pupils from approximately 58 countries, with 60% of the students being European. The school's current enrolment, over 400 pupils, is equally divided between male and female. The majority of students are between the ages of 14 and 18. The

student-teacher ratio A student teacher or prac teacher (''practise teacher'') is a college, university, or Postgraduate education, graduate student who is teaching under the supervision of a certified teacher in order to qualify for a degree in education. Student tea ...

is 3.5:1 with the average class size being fewer than 20 students, and the average teacher's length of stay at Le Rosey is over ten years. Students at Le Rosey are nicknamed "Roséens" (in French) or "Roseans" (in English), and former students are labeled "Les Anciens Roséens". The school's campus has of landscaped grounds. The school's sailing centre, the "Fleur d'Eau", is situated along 100 metres of shoreline on

Lake Geneva Lake Geneva is a deep lake on the north side of the Alps, shared between Switzerland and France. It is one of the List of largest lakes of Europe, largest lakes in Western Europe and the largest on the course of the Rhône. Sixty percent () ...

. Le Rosey is reportedly the only boarding school in the world to change campuses

seasonally A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and polar ...

. In spring and autumn, classes are held at the Château du Rosey campus in the village of Rolle in the canton of Vaud, located between

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

and

Lausanne Lausanne ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of towns in Switzerland, city of the Swiss French-speaking Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Vaud, in Switzerland. It is a hilly city situated on the shores of Lake Geneva, about halfway bet ...

in southwestern Switzerland. For the winter months of January through March, the entire student body moves to a group of

chalet A chalet (pronounced in British English; in American English usually ), also called Swiss chalet, is a type of building or house, typical of the Alpine region in Europe. It is made of wood, with a heavy, gently sloping roof and wide, well-su ...

s in the ski resort town of Gstaad in the

History

Château du Rosey, a

feudal Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was a combination of legal, economic, military, cultural, and political customs that flourished in Middle Ages, medieval Europe from the 9th to 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of struc ...

chateau located on Le Rosey's main campus at Rolle, dates to the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

and houses the school's central reception area. In 1880, the site of Le Rosey's campus was chosen by the school's founder, Paul-Emile Carnal, "a lover of nature, history and the countryside". The school's campus at Rolle is situated adjacent to Lake Geneva. In 1911, the founder passed the ownership of Le Rosey to his son, Henri-Paul Carnal. In 1917, the school began to go to Gstaad in the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

-speaking canton of Bern for the winter months to escape the dense fog that settles in on Lake Geneva. In 1931, Lucien Brunel, a former member of the International Red Cross and former director of the Institut Haccius at the Château de Lancy (Geneva), also known as the Grand-Lancy Castle, took on by demand of Henri Carnal, the direction of Rosey until 1949. In 1947, the third generation of directors, Louis Johannot and Helen Schaub, assumed ownership of Le Rosey. Under the same ownership, Le Rosey admitted girls for the first time in 1967 and opened a separate girls' campus. In 1980, the current owners, Philippe and Anne Gudin de la Sablonnière, became the fourth generation of directors at Le Rosey. Louis Johannot, in an interview with ''

Life Magazine ''Life'' (stylized as ''LIFE'') is an American magazine launched in 1883 as a weekly publication. In 1972, it transitioned to publishing "special" issues before running as a monthly from 1978 to 2000. Since then, ''Life'' has irregularly publi ...

'' in 1965, made a comment that received considerable attention: "The only reason I always try to meet and know the parents better is because it helps me to forgive their children." Prior to the introduction of the 10% quota, wherein no more than 10% of the student body may come from one country, different nationalities made up the majority of students at Le Rosey. In the 1950s and 1960s, the majority of students were

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

, or

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

; in the 1970s the majority was

Arab Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...

Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...

; in the 1980s the majority was

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, people from the Korean peninsula or of Korean descent * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Korean **Korean dialects **See also: North–South differences in t ...

; and in the 1990s the majority was

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

. During the 1990s, the children of

Russian oligarchs Russian oligarchs () are business oligarchs of the former Soviet republics who rapidly accumulated wealth in the 1990s via the Russian privatisation that followed the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The failing Soviet state left the ownershi ...

, who made up a third of the student body, gained notoriety for "terrorizing" other students, something that is disputed, resulting in the withdrawal of at least one non-Russian student. In 2014, Le Rosey inaugurated the Paul & Henri Carnal Hall, an arts and learning centre for Le Rosey and the

La Côte La Côte (, ) is part of the sloping Lake Geneva () north shore, stretching from Nyon to Lausanne in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. Known for its vineyards, the area has views towards the high Alps across the lake. Communes * Mies * Coppet ...

region.

Accreditation

Swiss

Le Rosey's (upper) secondary education (''Middle and High School'') is not approved as a Gymnasium by the bureau for gymnasial and vocational education MBA (''Mittelschul- und Berufsbildungsamt MBA''), administration for education (''Erziehungsdirektion''), canton of Bern, nor by the

Swiss Federal State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland *Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

(SERI).

International

Institut Le Rosey is fully accredited by the

New England Association of Schools and Colleges The New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Inc. (NEASC ) is an American educational organization that accredits private and public secondary schools (high schools and technical/career institutions), primarily in New England. It also ...

, the International Baccalaureate, the Ministry of National Education of France and the Council of International Schools. Le Rosey is also a member of the European Council of International Schools.

Academic curriculum

Institut Le Rosey's academic

curriculum In education, a curriculum (; : curriculums or curricula ) is the totality of student experiences that occur in an educational process. The term often refers specifically to a planned sequence of instruction, or to a view of the student's experi ...

is designed to "provide education of breadth, depth and quality for an international student body." Le Rosey offers a rigorous bilingual and bicultural education with the principal language of instruction being French or English depending on the student's academic programme. Beginning in Class 9 (US 3rd grade) and ending in Class 7 (US 5th grade), Junior students at Le Rosey follow the Primary Bilingual Programme. The Programme follows the French national curriculum for classes taught in French and the

British national curriculum British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

for classes taught in English, which are both complemented by the International Primary Curriculum to create an international education. Le Rosey students in Classes 6–2 (US 6th–10th grade) choose their principal language and continue their studies in French or English. If possible, students may study their

mother tongue A first language (L1), native language, native tongue, or mother tongue is the first language a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongue'' refers ...

and a third or even a fourth language in addition to their principal language of instruction. Over 20 different languages have been taught at Le Rosey in the past five years. During the Secondary Bilingual Programme, English and French classes are obligatory, and upon entering Class 3 (US 9th grade), students begin the two-year "Pre-Bac" Programme to prepare the students for either the internationally recognised International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme or the Francophone-oriented French Baccalaureate. At Le Rosey, the

IB Diploma Programme The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) is a two-year educational programme primarily aimed at 16-to-19-year-olds in 140 countries around the world. The programme provides an internationally accepted qualification for entry int ...

and the French Baccalaureate cover the last two years of schooling (Class 1 and Class t).

Facilities

Rolle campus

Le Rosey's main campus, near Rolle, is on adjacent to Lake Geneva. It is divided into two campuses, one for boys situated on the main campus and one for girls called La Combe. The boarding houses contain a total of 179 bedrooms with en suite bathrooms, and all together the academic buildings contain: 53 classrooms, eight science

laboratories A laboratory (; ; colloquially lab) is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which science, scientific or technological research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. Laboratories are found in a variety of settings such as s ...

, 14 specially-equipped rooms, 48 apartments for Le Rosey teachers, two infirmaries, a library/media centre with about 20,000 to 30,000 literary and reference works, a theatre, three dining rooms and two canteens, an auditorium, two gyms, and an

ecumenical Ecumenism ( ; alternatively spelled oecumenism)also called interdenominationalism, or ecumenicalismis the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships ...

chapel. Sports and arts facilities at Le Rosey include: ten

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impuriti ...

tennis court A tennis court is the venue where the sport of tennis is played. It is a firm rectangular surface with a low net stretched across the centre. The same surface can be used to play both Types of tennis match, doubles and singles matches. A variet ...

s, a indoor pool and wellness centre, a 25-metre outdoor pool, three football pitches, a synthetic rugby pitch, a wood chip

running track An all-weather running track is a rubberized, artificial running surface for track and field athletics. It provides a consistent surface for competitors to test their athletic ability unencumbered by adverse weather conditions. Historically, v ...

, a

shooting Shooting is the act or process of discharging a projectile from a ranged weapon (such as a gun, bow, crossbow, slingshot, or blowpipe). Even the acts of launching flame, artillery, darts, harpoons, grenades, rockets, and guided missile ...

and

archery range Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In modern ti ...

, an open-air theatre, and a computer-regulated

greenhouse A greenhouse is a structure that is designed to regulate the temperature and humidity of the environment inside. There are different types of greenhouses, but they all have large areas covered with transparent materials that let sunlight pass an ...

. Off-campus Le Rosey owns a private equestrian centre housing 30 horses, an indoor

riding school An equestrian facility is created and maintained for the purpose of accommodating, training or competing equids, especially horses. Based on their use, they may be known as a barn, stables, or riding hall and may include commercial operations de ...

, a

dressage Dressage ( or ; , most commonly translated as "training") is a form of horse riding performed in exhibition and competition, as well as an art sometimes pursued solely for the sake of mastery. As an equestrianism, equestrian sport defined by th ...

area, and a clubhouse. Also off-campus is the Le Rosey sailing centre equipped with ten

dinghies A dinghy is a type of small boat, often carried or Towing, towed by a Watercraft, larger vessel for use as a Ship's tender, tender. Utility dinghies are usually rowboats or have an outboard motor. Some are rigged for sailing but they diffe ...

, three

motorboat A motorboat or powerboat is a boat that is exclusively powered by an engine; faster examples may be called "speedboats". Some motorboats are fitted with inboard engines, others have an outboard motor installed on the rear, containing the inter ...

s, three

yawl A yawl is a type of boat. The term has several meanings. It can apply to the rig (or sailplan), to the hull type or to the use which the vessel is put. As a rig, a yawl is a two masted, fore and aft rigged sailing vessel with the mizzen mast ...

s and a

yacht A yacht () is a sail- or marine propulsion, motor-propelled watercraft made for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a ...

Gstaad campus

The school's winter campus, at the ski resort of Gstaad in the Bernese Oberland, is composed of several traditional chalets within the town. The girls' campus, at Schönried, is situated a 10-minute train ride away from Gstaad and is composed of five chalets used solely for boarding and dining. The students utilise local facilities, including: swimming pool, fitness centre, tennis courts, ice hockey rink, a bowling alley, curling, of

alpine ski ''Alpine Ski'' (アルパイン・スキ一) is an alpine skiing arcade video game released by Taito in 1981. The player controls a skier on a vertically scrolling video game, vertically scrolling course who can move left, right, or increase for ...

slopes and of

cross-country ski Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing whereby skiers traverse snow-covered terrain without use of ski lifts or other assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreational activity; however, some still use it as a m ...

tracks, of

snowshoe Snowshoes are specialized outdoor gear for walking over snow. Their large footprint spreads the user's weight out and allows them to travel largely on top of rather than through snow. Adjustable bindings attach them to appropriate winter footw ...

ing trails, climbing walls, and via ferratas.

Tuition fees

, the annual boarding and academic fees are CHF 125,000 (approximately US$133,000), without extra fees such as those for sports, etc. The Rosey Foundation, which oversees the financing of Le Rosey's Carnal Hall, makes

scholarship A scholarship is a form of Student financial aid, financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, Multiculturalism, diversity and inclusion, athleti ...

s possible to "particularly deserving" students, and the four-member Rosey Scholarship Committee allots them to the approved students. Institut Le Rosey does not directly offer scholarships to any person; scholarships are only made available through the Rosey Foundation.

Associations

L'Association Internationale des Anciens Roséens (AIAR), the International Association of Former Roseans, is Le Rosey's

alumni association An alumni association or alumnae association is an association of graduates or, more broadly, of former students ( alumni). In the United Kingdom and the United States, alumni of universities, colleges, school A school is the educati ...

, the members of which have been major contributors to 20th-century

world history Human history or world history is the record of humankind from prehistory to the present. Early modern human, Modern humans evolved in Africa around 300,000 years ago and initially lived as hunter-gatherers. They Early expansions of hominin ...

. The AIAR, a prestigious network of former students, has alumni representatives in most countries and in many major cities across the world. Le Rosey's first alumni association, the "Old Rosey Association", was created on 21 July 1922 by a small group of alumni in the presence of the son of the school's founder, Henri Carnal. In 1926, the "Belgian Old Rosey Association" was founded; like the Old Rosey Association, it was declining due to slow international communication between alumni. The current alumni association, the AIAR, was established in 1964. The school's list of alumni is not published and access to AIAR events and meetings is exclusive to former students. Institut Le Rosey is fully accredited by the

, the

Ministry of National Education of France The Ministry of National Education and Youth, or simply Ministry of National Education, as the title has changed several times in the course of the Fifth Republic, is the cabinet member in the Government of France who oversees the country's pu ...

and the Council of International Schools. Le Rosey is also a member of the European Council of International Schools.

Notable alumni

Institut Le Rosey has over 5,000 former students. It has educated generations of dynastic families, including members of the

Hohenzollern The House of Hohenzollern (, ; , ; ) is a formerly royal (and from 1871 to 1918, imperial) German dynasty whose members were variously princes, electors, kings and emperors of Hohenzollern, Brandenburg, Prussia, the German Empire, and Romania. ...

Cavendish Cavendish may refer to: People * The House of Cavendish, a British aristocratic family * Margaret Cavendish (1623–1673), British poet, philosopher, and scientist * Cavendish (author) (1831–1899), pen name of Henry Jones, English auth ...

Rothschild Rothschild () is a name derived from the German ''zum rothen Schild'' (with the old spelling "th"), meaning "to the red shield", in reference to the houses where these family members lived or had lived. At the time, houses were designated by signs ...

Koskull The Koskull family (, ), also written as Koschkull, is a wealthy aristocratic family of Livonian and German origin, famous for their extensive lands and manors. The family is descended from the first King of Livonia and officially established i ...

Metternich Klemens Wenzel Nepomuk Lothar, Prince of Metternich-Winneburg zu Beilstein ( ; 15 May 1773 – 11 June 1859), known as Klemens von Metternich () or Prince Metternich, was a Germans, German statesman and diplomat in the service of the Austrian ...

Borghese The House of Borghese ( , ) is a family of Italian noble and papal background, originating as the Borghese or Borghesi in Siena, where they came to prominence in the 13th century and held offices under the '' commune''. During the 16th century, t ...

Hohenlohe The House of Hohenlohe () is a German princely dynasty. It formerly ruled an immediate territory within the Holy Roman Empire, which was divided between several branches. In 1806, the area of Hohenlohe was 1,760 km² and its estimated pop ...

Molson The Molson Brewery is a Canada-based brewery based in Montreal and was established in 1786 by the Molson family. In 2005, Molson merged with the Adolph Coors Company to become Molson Coors. Molson Coors maintains some of its Canadian operati ...

, Rockefeller, Niarchos, Safra, Du Pont and Radziwiłł families. The school has educated royalty and high society from around the world, such as

Alexander, Crown Prince of Yugoslavia Alexander, Crown Prince of Yugoslavia (; born 17 July 1945), is the head of the Karađorđević dynasty, House of Karađorđević, the former royal house of the defunct Kingdom of Yugoslavia and its predecessor the Kingdom of Serbia. Alexander ...

Prince Edward, Duke of Kent Prince Edward, Duke of Kent (Edward George Nicholas Paul Patrick; born 9 October 1935) is a member of the British royal family. The elder son of Prince George, Duke of Kent, and Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark, he is a grandson of George ...

, the

Muhammad Ali Dynasty The Muhammad Ali dynasty or the Alawiyya dynasty was the ruling dynasty of Egypt and Sudan from the 19th to the mid-20th century. It is named after its progenitor, the Albanians, Albanian Muhammad Ali of Egypt, Muhammad Ali, regarded as the fou ...

of Egypt, the

House of Glücksburg The House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, also known by its short name as the House of Glücksburg, is the senior surviving branch of the German House of Oldenburg, one of Europe's oldest royal houses. Oldenburg house members hav ...

of Greece and the

House of Savoy The House of Savoy (, ) is a royal house (formally a dynasty) of Franco-Italian origin that was established in 1003 in the historical region of Savoy, which was originally part of the Kingdom of Burgundy and now lies mostly within southeastern F ...

of Italy. Le Rosey has educated several

monarch A monarch () is a head of stateWebster's II New College Dictionary. "Monarch". Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. Life tenure, for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest ...

s, including the

Aga Khan IV Prince Karim al-Husseini (13 December 1936 – 4 February 2025), known as the Aga Khan IV, was the 49th Imamah, imam of Imamate in Nizari doctrine, Nizari Isma'ilism from 1957 until his death in 2025. He inherited the Imamate in Nizari doctrine ...

, King

Albert II of Belgium Albert II (born 6 June 1934) is a member of the Belgian royal family who reigned as King of the Belgians from 9 August 1993 until his abdication on 21 July 2013. Albert II is the son of King Leopold III and the last living child of Queen As ...

, King

Baudouin I of Belgium Baudouin (; 7 September 1930 – 31 July 1993) was King of the Belgians from 17 July 1951 until his death in 1993. He was the last Belgian king to be sovereign of the Belgian Congo, Congo, before it became independent in 1960 and became the Demo ...

, King

Fuad II of Egypt Fuad II (, full name: Ahmed Fuad bin Farouk bin Ahmed Fuad bin Ismail bin Ibrahim bin Muhammad Ali; born 16 January 1952), or alternatively Ahmed Fuad II (), is a member of the Egyptian Muhammad Ali dynasty. As an infant, he formally reigned as ...

, King

Ntare V of Burundi Ntare V of Burundi (born Charles Ndizeye; 2 December 1947 – 29 April 1972), less commonly numbered Ntare III, was the last king (''mwami'') of Burundi, reigning from July to November 1966. Until his accession, he was known as Crown Prince Char ...

, Shah

Mohammad Reza Pahlavi Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (26 October 1919 – 27 July 1980) was the last List of monarchs of Iran, Shah of Iran, ruling from 1941 to 1979. He succeeded his father Reza Shah and ruled the Imperial State of Iran until he was overthrown by the ...

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

and Prince

Rainier III of Monaco Rainier III (Rainier Louis Henri Maxence Bertrand Grimaldi; 31 May 1923 – 6 April 2005) was Prince of Monaco from 1949 to his death in 2005. Rainier ruled the Principality of Monaco for almost 56 years. Rainier was born at the Prince's Pala ...

. Other notable alumni include Princess ''Ashi'' Euphelma Choden Wangchuck and Prince ''Dasho''

Ugyen Jigme Wangchuck Prince ''Dasho'' Ugyen Jigme Wangchuck (, born 11 November 1994) is a member of the royal family of Bhutan and is the youngest of the sons of the fourth King of Bhutan Jigme Singye Wangchuck and his wife, Queen Mother ''Ashi'' Tshering Pem, Tshe ...

of Bhutan,

Guillaume, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg Prince Guillaume, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg (''Guillaume Jean Joseph Marie''; born 11 November 1981), is the heir apparent to the Luxembourg throne since October 2000 and regent of the country since October 2024, as the son of Grand ...

Princess Fawzia-Latifa of Egypt Princess Fawzia-Latifa (; born 12 February 1982) is the daughter of Fuad II (last King of Egypt) by his wife, Fadila (born Dominique-France Loeb-Picard). Early life Fawzia-Latifa was born on 12 February 1982 in Monte Carlo, Monaco. She was na ...

Marie-Chantal, Crown Princess of Greece Marie-Chantal, Crown Princess of Greece (Greek: Μαρί Σαντάλ Μίλλερ; born 17 September 1968), is a member of the former Greek royal family and the extended Danish royal family. She is married to Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece, s ...

, her sisters

Pia Getty Pia Christina Miller Getty (born 1966) is a socialite and heiress. Early life She is the eldest daughter of Robert Warren Miller, an American-born British businessman, and wife María Clara "Chantal" Pesantes Becerra, an Ecuadorians, Ecuadorian, ...

and

Alexandra von Fürstenberg Alexandra Natasha von Fürstenberg (; born October 3, 1972) is a Hong Kong-born American heiress, socialite, entrepreneur and furniture designer based in Los Angeles. She is the youngest daughter of American billionaire and DFS Group co-founder ...

, John Lennon's son

Sean Lennon is a British-American musician, songwriter, and producer. He is the son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, and half-brother to Julian Lennon. Over the course of his career, he has been a member of the bands Cibo Matto, the Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tige ...

, the Swiss entrepreneur Eugenio Losa, rewilding advocate

Randal Plunkett, 21st Baron of Dunsany Randal Plunkett, 21st Baron of Dunsany (born 9 March 1983) is an Irish filmmaker, landowner and rewilding advocate. Plunkett is the holder of a peerage title, and holds Dunsany Castle and Demesne, Dunsany Castle, one of the longest-inhabited hou ...

, heiress Tatiana Santo Domingo, The Strokes'

Julian Casablancas Julian Fernando Casablancas (born August 23, 1978) is an American musician. He is the lead vocalist and primary songwriter of the Rock music, rock band the Strokes, with whom he has released six studio albums since their founding in 1998. Casabl ...

Albert Hammond Jr. Albert Louis Hammond Jr. (born Albert Louis Hammond III; April 9, 1980) is an American musician who is a member of the rock band The Strokes. He is best known for his role as rhythm and lead guitarist, as well as occasionally a keyboard player a ...

and actress

Tracee Ellis Ross Tracee Joy Silberstein (born October 29, 1972), known professionally as Tracee Ellis Ross, is an American actress. She is known for her lead roles in the television series '' Girlfriends'' (2000–2008) and '' Black-ish'' (2014–2022) receivin ...

In fiction and popular culture

In fiction, the school is most commonly mentioned in novels relating to the rich and famous, and usually takes the role of being the choice of education for different characters. Le Rosey has been mentioned in

Judith Krantz Judith Krantz (née Tarcher; January 9, 1928 – June 22, 2019) was an American magazine writer, fashion editor, and novelist. Her first novel '' Scruples'' (1978) was a ''New York Times'' best-seller and was translated into 50 languages. ''Scrup ...

's novels ''

Princess Daisy is a princess character in the Mario (franchise), ''Mario'' franchise. She debuted in the 1989 Game Boy launch game ''Super Mario Land'' as the ruler of Sarasaland where she was given the role of damsel in distress for Mario to rescue. The ga ...

'' (1980) and '' Till We Meet Again'' (1988), as well as in several romance novels by

Karen Robards Karen Robards (born August 24, 1954, in Louisville, Kentucky) is a best-selling author of over fifty novels. After first gaining recognition for her historical romances, Robards became one of the first historical romance novelists to successfull ...

. The school is also mentioned in ''Master of the Game'' (1982) by Sidney Sheldon, '' Answered Prayers'' (1986) by

Truman Capote Truman Garcia Capote ( ; born Truman Streckfus Persons; September 30, 1924 – August 25, 1984) was an American novelist, screenwriter, playwright, and actor. Several of his short stories, novels, and plays have been praised as literary classics ...

, ''Any Woman's Blues'' (1990) by

Erica Jong Erica Jong (née Mann; born March 26, 1942) is an American novelist, satirist, and poet known particularly for her 1973 novel ''Fear of Flying''. The book became famously controversial for its attitudes towards female sexuality and figured pro ...

, ''For Love Alone'' (1992) by

Ivana Trump Ivana Marie Trump (; February 20, 1949 – July 14, 2022) was a businesswoman, socialite, and model. She lived in Canada in the 1970s, before relocating to the United States and marrying Donald Trump in 1977. She held key managerial positions ...

, and ''What Became of Her'' (2002) by Marijane Meaker. Similarly, Le Rosey is mentioned in

Bret Easton Ellis Bret Easton Ellis (born March 7, 1964) is an American author and screenwriter. Ellis was one of the literary Brat Pack (literary), Brat Pack and is a self-proclaimed satirist whose trademark technique as a writer is the expression of extreme acts ...

' novel ''

American Psycho ''American Psycho'' is a black comedy horror novel by American writer Bret Easton Ellis, published in 1991. The story is told in the First-person narrative, first-person by Patrick Bateman, a wealthy, narcissistic, and vain Manhattan investmen ...

'' (1991), as the

alma mater Alma mater (; : almae matres) is an allegorical Latin phrase meaning "nourishing mother". It personifies a school that a person has attended or graduated from. The term is related to ''alumnus'', literally meaning 'nursling', which describes a sc ...

of Evelyn Williams, who is the protagonist's fiancée. In the movie ''

Monte Carlo Monte Carlo ( ; ; or colloquially ; , ; ) is an official administrative area of Monaco, specifically the Ward (country subdivision), ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is located. Informally, the name also refers to ...

'', the character Cordelia Winthrop-Scott, played by

Selena Gomez Selena Marie Gomez ( ; born July 22, 1992) is an American actress, singer, songwriter, producer, and businesswoman. Gomez began her career as a child actress, appearing on the children's television series ''Barney & Friends'' (2002–2004), a ...

, attended Le Rosey. In a 2002 episode of '' Law & Order: Criminal Intent'', affluent character Martha Strick, played by

Veanne Cox Veanne Cox (born January 19, 1963) is an Emmy and Tony-nominated American stage and screen actress and former ballet dancer. Early life Cox was born in Norfolk, Virginia. She is a 1981 graduate of Manchester High School in Chesterfield, Virgin ...

, says she attended Le Rosey. Two prominent characters in

Emily in Paris '' Emily in Paris'' is an American romantic comedy drama television series created by Darren Star for Netflix. The series stars Lily Collins as aspiring marketing executive Emily Cooper, an American who moves to Paris to provide an American p ...

, Mindy and Nicolas, knew each from their time at Le Rosey. In non-fiction, alumni

Michael Korda Michael Korda (born 8 October 1933) is an English-born writer and novelist who was editor-in-chief of Simon & Schuster in New York City. Early years Born in London, Michael Korda is the son of English actress Gertrude Musgrove and the Hungarian ...

and

James Laughlin James Laughlin (October 30, 1914 – November 12, 1997) was an American poet and literary book publisher who founded New Directions Publishing. Early life He was born in Pittsburgh, the son of Henry Hughart and Marjory Rea Laughlin. Laughlin ...

have written about their experiences and memories at Le Rosey. Columnist

Taki Theodoracopulos Panagiotis "Taki" Theodoracopulos (; ; born 11 August 1936) is a Greek writer and publisher who founded '' Taki's Magazine'' and co-founded '' The American Conservative''. His column "High Life" appeared in British weekly ''The Spectator'' from ...

has written extensively on the school and its alumni, and was in the middle of a mild controversy when in 1998 he jokingly wrote in ''

The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British political and cultural news magazine. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving magazine in the world. ''The Spectator'' is politically conservative, and its principal subject a ...

'' that

Osama bin Laden Osama bin Laden (10 March 19572 May 2011) was a militant leader who was the founder and first general emir of al-Qaeda. Ideologically a pan-Islamist, Bin Laden participated in the Afghan ''mujahideen'' against the Soviet Union, and support ...

had attended Le Rosey. The story resulted in an outcry from American readers, inquiries from several magazines, and the school publicly and "vehemently" denying that bin Laden had attended Le Rosey. In 1999, American journalist

Paul Klebnikov Paul Klebnikov (; June 3, 1963 – July 9, 2004) was an American journalist and historian of Russia. He worked for ''Forbes'' magazine for more than 10 years and at the time of his death was chief editor of the Russian edition of ''Forbes' ...

wrote an

exposé Expose, exposé, or exposed may refer to: News sources * Exposé (journalism), a form of investigative journalism * '' The Exposé'', a British conspiracist website * ''Exeposé'', a student-run newspaper of the University of Exeter Film and TV F ...

on Le Rosey in ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

'' magazine detailing the problems the school was experiencing with its majority Russian student body.

Richard René Silvin Richard René Silvin (born May 16, 1948) is an American retired corporate executive, turned author and lecturer, who is best known as an expert on Wallis Simpson, the Duchess of Windsor, Palm Beach society architect, Addison Mizner, the 1930s Fr ...

released his book ''I survived Swiss Boarding Schools'' in 2006 and a second edition in 2018, chronicling his time at Le Rosey in the 50s and 60s.

Plans to leave Gstaad

In January 2008, Swiss economics magazine ''Bilanz'', a subsidiary of

Edipresse Edipresse is a company headquartered in Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, ...

, published an interview with Le Rosey Director-General Philippe Gudin that revealed the school is seeking to sell its Gstaad winter campus and build a new campus in another location. Gudin is in negotiations with the local authorities in Schönried, a suburb of Gstaad located a few minutes away, to construct a new main campus on an undeveloped piece of land, and this has run into difficulties due to zoning restrictions. Reasons for moving to a new campus, according to the Director-General, include the fact that the school's personnel, who typically live on campus, are at maximum capacity, and that the student body can no longer increase in size due to the lack of space. Gudin stated that for the moment the new winter campus location will be in Switzerland, and he has not ruled out the

French Alps The French Alps are the portions of the Alps mountain range that stand within France, located in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions. While some of the ranges of the French Alps are entirely in France, others, such a ...

. The of prime real estate that the school occupies on Ried Hill in the centre of Gstaad is estimated to be worth several hundreds of millions of

USD The United States dollar (symbol: $; currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introduced the U.S. dollar at par with the Spanish silver dollar, divided it int ...

, considering the ''

International Herald Tribune The ''International Herald Tribune'' (''IHT'') was a daily English-language newspaper published in Paris, France, for international English-speaking readers. It published under the name ''International Herald Tribune'' starting in 1967, but its ...

'' reports that the price per square meter in Gstaad starts at 20,000 CHF (19,000 US$) and can rise to 45,000 CHF (43,000 US$). Gudin asserts that the high value of the Gstaad winter campus has nothing to do with its planned sale.

References

External links

*
Pictures of the school and its surroundings
{{Authority control Private schools in Switzerland Boarding schools in Switzerland International Baccalaureate schools in Switzerland Educational institutions established in 1880 Co-educational boarding schools 1880 establishments in Switzerland Rolle Buildings and structures in the canton of Vaud