UK Sixth Form (16+) Applications
“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.”
Helen Keller
Demystifying Sixth form school entry
An increasing number of people are opting to change schools in the UK for sixth form (known as 16+). This is the last point at which students can usually change secondary schools (after 11+ in year 7 and 13+ in year 9). While some find the idea of moving schools at this stage - alongside A Levels and university admissions preparations - daunting, 16+ moves can allow transitions to schools which might suit a particular student better. They also offer the chance to start a new chapter and make new friends.
Below our schools admission experts answer some of the most common questions about 16+ - demystifying the UK’s sixth form admissions process.
Why move?
Moving schools is always a big decision and one that should be made for the correct reasons, both personal and educational. Some of the most common motivations for students moving include the wish to switch from single sex to co-educational, or day school to boarding, as a better preparation for university life; moving from state school to independent school or vice versa; to be able to study the curriculum that best suits their needs (A Levels vs. IB vs. Cambridge Pre-U); and finally, seeking to improve the chances of getting into particular universities (some schools offer additional Oxbridge or US support classes, for example)
How competitive is the 16+ entry process?
Most schools only have a limited number of places at the 16+ level, normally in the low double digits. There are schools that have a higher capacity (including Westminster and others). These schools tend to have a correspondingly larger number of applications and, as such, can be highly competitive too. 16+ is therefore seen as much more selective than 11+ and 13+ and the process is also standardised. We therefore recommend students to start planning and preparing as early as year 10.
Listed below are the rough number of places for some of the more in demand schools:
Charterhouse: 75 girls and 30 boys
Cheltenham Ladies’ College: 55 girls
City of London School for Boys: 12 to 15 boys
City of London School for Girls: 15 to 20 girls
Eton College: 4 boys
Harrow School: up to 20 boys
King’s College Wimbledon: 50 girls, 5 boys
Radley School: 20 to 25 boys
Sevenoaks School: 75 to 80 students
St Mary’s Ascot: 5 girls
St Paul’s Girls’ School: 20 boys
Wellington College: 40 to 50 students
Westminster School: 60 to 70 girls, less than 10 boys
Winchester College: small number
Timelines and application process
Many schools prefer prospective pupils to have visited the school; the easiest way to do this is to attend the open days which normally take place towards the end of the summer term of Year 10 and/or the beginning of autumn term of Year 11. Prospective applicants then need to register by September of Year 11 (the year prior to entry). As part of the application process, students may be required to submit a personal statement (usually covering their academics, extra curricular activities and motivations for applying), their latest school report, as well as a reference from their current school.
Students applying from overseas may need to take an academic test (the UKISET) before the end of September. This is a standardised adaptive online entry test designed to support admission into the UK independent education system, measuring verbal and non-verbal reasoning, mathematics and english. (More information can be found on the UKiset website www.ukiset.com)
Entrance examinations
Sixth form exams and interviews take place in October and November of Year 11.
The 16+ entrance examinations are typically around 45 minutes to an hour in length, with prospective pupils sitting papers either in the subjects they wish to study at A Level or in English and Maths and one or two additional chosen subjects. These exams are generally set in-house by the school and, whilst loosely based on the GCSE / AS Level syllabus, they are designed to challenge the applicant and promote critical, logical thinking as well as test the students’ ability to apply familiar concepts to new situations. Essentially, schools are looking for students with high potential for excelling academically at sixth form and continue on to top universities. Past papers or specimen papers are occasionally published by schools so please check their websites.
Interviews
Most schools will require an interview before making an offer. These are usually conducted by senior staff members who are looking for candidates with not only strong academic ability, but also those who are a right fit for the school, have extracurricular interests, and have an idea of what they would like to do beyond sixth form. Some schools may also conduct subject specific interviews. This is a chance for students to demonstrate their passion and thinking, and ability to respond to new material and think innovatively on the spot, and as such are similar in style to Oxbridge interviews.
Results
Finally, results are announced in December with offers usually being conditional upon the student meeting the school’s minimum GCSE requirements. (Selective grammar schools do not use exams for sixth form entry, instead basing offers on GCSE performance and giving places to students with the highest average GCSE score.)
How can J&J Education help?
Many of our tutors have been on both sides of the table: both going through the 16+ process themselves as students, but also as teachers at these highly competitive schools. We offer end to end support from subject specific GCSE tuition to school selection and application submission to exam and interview support. Please get in touch to discuss how we can help you.