UK Guide to Independent Schools

Qualifications

Advanced Highers
This Scottish qualification is taken in the sixth year (S6), a year after taking Highers. For more information on the Scottish examination system, see Scotland.

Advanced Subsidiary levels
See AS-levels.

AEAs
Advanced Extension Awards are sixth form examinations intended to differentiate between the most able candidates, particularly in subjects with a high proportion of A grades at A-level (in order to obviate the need for universities to develop their own tests). They are not widely taken.
See Music & Dance Scheme and Dance & Drama Awards (DADAs).

A-levels
A-levels matter. Three A-levels, with good grades (in addition to at least one AS-level), are now needed to get into the top university courses; two for some others. Except in Scotland and international schools, the great majority of pupils in independent schools take A-levels. They are regarded as the 'gold standard' of secondary education, the passport to top universities.

There are some 40 A-level subjects, both academic and vocational; most sixth forms in the book offer 20-25. There are A-levels in all the traditional school subjects (English, history, chemistry etc) as well as many others such as business studies, classical studies, media studies and psychology. There are also A-levels in vocational subjects such as applied business and health & social care. These are designed to enable students to develop skills, knowledge and understanding to prepare them for the world of work as well as for higher education..

Not all universities (or courses) necessarily accept all A-level subjects and, for the purposes of university admissions, some A-level subjects are more widely useful than others. Most schools help match A-level choices with what your child wants to do after school, as well as their aptitudes. It is worth finding out which subjects and - most important - which combinations of subjects are available; some schools have an arts or science bias.

The A-level course is designed to be completed in two years in the sixth form - taking the first half of each as an AS-level (or A1) in the first year (lower sixth or Year 12), and completing it as an A-level (or A2) in the second (upper sixth or Year 13). All now are modular: each A-level comprises six discrete units, three at AS-level and three at A-level. They are marked on a scale A-E (see also Tariff points)

The vocational A-levels (currently called AVCEs) do not at present have a formal AS-level award. But from 2005 they will match the standard structure and simply be called AS and A-levels, with no distinguishing moniker. Both the AS and A-level vocational awards can be single or double (ie equivalent to one or two AS or A-levels).

AS-levels
The Advanced Subsidiary (AS-level or A1) qualification is usually studied in the lower sixth (Year 12). The aim is to encourage a broad programme of study post-16 and young people are encouraged to study four or five AS-level subjects in the lower sixth. Pupils can then either drop the subject with the AS-level qualification, or continue in the same subject to A-level. Most sixth formers in independent schools study four subjects to AS-level, taking three on to A-level. Each AS-level represents the first half of an A-level, consisting of the first three units and 50% of the marks. They are assessed at a level of difficulty intermediate between GCSE and A-level. They are marked on a scale A-E. See also A-levels.

AVCEs
See A-levels.

Dance & Drama Awards (DADAs)
These are government awards for students who want to become professional dancers, actors and stage managers; some dance teaching courses are also covered. Over 500 awards are made each year to students to train at one of the 22 institutions in the scheme - which include the sixth forms of some of the specialist schools in the book. DADAs provide means-tested help with fees and living costs. Applicants must be over 16 for dance courses (but for acting and stage management courses you must be over 18). Contact the school direct for information and how to apply.

Entrance exams
Many schools set their own entrance exams; even those that use Common Entrance (CE) may have their own exams for non-standard applicants. Some have their own preliminary qualifying exams some years before CE. Some schools have formed consortia (eg in London and Bristol), so that candidates for more than one member school sit a single examination. Exams are usually held early in the academic year prior to entry, so approach the school well in advance. You may be able to get hold of some past papers - each school's will be different. Try not to enter your child for more than 2 or 3 entrance exams; that means being careful in your choice and, perhaps, choosing one that is less competitive than the others. Do not throw your child into an entrance exam without adequate preparation. Many of the hairy anecdotes of childhood examination trauma are rooted in parents failing to ensure proper preparation, particularly when transfer from a maintained primary school is being attempted and the exam syllabus unfamiliar.

Exam results
Public examination results matter. And this can be a substantial part of the package that most parents assume they are buying. Raw educational statistics suggest they are right. Most independent schools score outstandingly well in government statistics. But good results are not a reliable gauge of a good education, indeed they are beginning to distort the concept of education itself: a school may have done a better job getting a marginal candidate to scrape through an A-level or two, than helping a bright pupil get four grade As. And, depressingly, there are plenty of pupils now leaving school with good A-levels who don't know (for instance) the structure of DNA or who Ghandi was. Some schools emphasise their academic results at the expense of all else - maybe a reflection of parents' concerns and certainly in response to league tables. Many schools are keen to advertise the number of top grades achieved and their percentage pass rates. A school could, of course, show a 100% pass rate having put one successful candidate in for one exam. We do not regard this as helpful information and we do not publish pass rates. The School reports highlight the results per average pupil in a school's cohort -usually results for GCSEs in Year 11 and A-levels in the upper sixth. These are expressed as the average points score. (For explanations of these, see GCSE scores and Tariff points). It is worth keeping academic results in perspective and starting with the aptitudes of your child. Some children will thrive in academic hothouses in which the principal aim is to get the maximum number of pupils through 3 or 4 A-levels; others will not and may do better in a less academic school and one which specialises in, say, riding or expeditions. British pupils are now so hugely over-examined, with public examinations in each of the last three years, that school leavers are being put off higher education, at least in the short term. Parental pressure may be counter-productive.

GCSE
General Certificate of Secondary Education, or GCSE, is normally taken at 16, following a two-year course in Years 10 and 11. It is designed to provide a single system of examination across the whole ability range and to enable candidates at all levels to demonstrate their knowledge, abilities and achievements; it includes in-course assessment as well as exams. It aims to test the ability to apply what is learned to practical situations rather than merely the ability to remember and re-present factual knowledge which has been acquired in the classroom. GCSEs may be taken in a wide range of subjects and also in a few vocational subjects eg applied ICT. Pass grades are A*-E but only A*-C are accepted for sixth form and university entrance. It is worth keeping your eye on what subjects a school offers, and in what combination your children would be allowed to take them. Our School reports show that the range on offer in any one school is between 10 and 25 subjects and that most schools let pupils take up to nine or ten GCSEs. Beyond that, generalisation is more difficult; it will depend on the school timetable, the ability of individual pupils and the school's policy. English, maths, a modern language and a science will be the core but the school may insist on all pupils taking eg French, the three separate sciences or two arts subjects. This can reduce the choice if the maximum is of 9 or 10 and force your children to drop subjects ludicrously early. Sometimes pupils may take one or two GCSEs early (often maths or a language) and additional GCSEs in the sixth form. There is a short GCSE course, designed to take half the study time of a full GCSE; it is graded using the same scale but covers fewer topics. The short course in IT is commonly taken in independent schools.

Highers
These are exams taken in Scotland and designed to be taken at age 17, in the fifth year (S5), one year after S-grades. Highers are made up of units which can stand in their own right. Four or five good Higher grades are needed for a place at university in Scotland, where students traditionally go to university a year earlier than they do in England (although this practice is decreasing in popularity). Universities and colleges south of the border find Highers confusing and sixth formers who want to go south will, in addition, need to take Advanced Highers or A-levels.

Some S6 pupils may take additional Highers in subjects they have not previously studied; in some schools a number of pupils may not take Highers until the sixth year - usually pupils who need 2 years to cope with the course. See also Scotland.

SATs
Standard Assessment Tasks are national tests or tasks taken at the end of each Key Stage in the National Curriculum. Independent schools are not obliged to take part and few do.

S-grades
Broadly speaking, the Scottish equivalent of GCSE - designed to test the whole ability range - and taken at 16 in S4. Scottish pupils often sit S-grades (standard grades) only in those subjects they do not propose to continue. This means that some of the ablest Scottish pupils will have only 3 or 4 S-grades. Bear that in mind when you read our School reports on Scottish schools.

This Independent School Guide also offers information on school league tables and the price of School fees advice and financial assistance.

For the information on school league tables go to School league tables and follow the appropriate links.

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