To earn the Cambridge AICE Diploma students must complete aligned courses and assessments across disciplines, which Henry Mason appreciated because it gave him a “holistic academic experience.”
Equipped with deep knowledge from English to Biology and a balanced durable skillset, Mason felt confident and competitive outside of the classroom at Juanita High School. The summer after junior year, for example, he held a position making animal prosthetics in a University of Washington paraplegics lab—a role he attributes landing to a strong interview.
“I knew I had a very rigorous background, but also that I wasn’t solely focused on the sciences,” he said. “They knew that I was able to communicate and ask questions…I think that was very important for the application process.”
He returned to the University of Washington in Fall 2026 to study engineering.
Mason was drawn to the Cambridge program because he wanted to challenge himself. Once involved, he discovered that beyond its rigor, the program offered the flexibility to accommodate different learning styles while supporting his unique background.
Diagnosed with dyslexia and dysgraphia at a young age, Mason experienced a mix of homeschooling and private schooling before entering high school. He said his Cambridge teachers and courses played a significant role in his academic and social development. While many traditional classes focused on rote memorization, Cambridge "flipped the learning style" by encouraging student-centered collaboration and active participation, which helped him gain confidence and recognize his own strengths.
Mason believes the rigorous, flexible and versatile nature of Cambridge not only set him up for success, but his peers.
“A lot of the colleges my friends were getting into were very competitive. A lot of them are going to Top 20s…great programs for their respective majors,” he said. “I would definitely say that consistently the Cambridge program is producing kids that are going to very high-level institutions.”
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