Admissions Overview

“a remarkably unpressurised environment in which to excel”
Tatler Schools Guide 2012

Girls 4 – 18 Years

You are warmly invited to contact Ms Elanor Young, Director of Admissions & Marketing, who will be very pleased to help you with all aspects of Oxford High School admissions procedures, or to arrange a visit to the Senior School. Please call 01865 318500 or e-mail to: e.young@oxf.gdst.net

Main Entry Points

Applications at all other ages are very welcome as places do come up. Please contact me concerning place availability at any time.

Visits

There are many opportunities to visit during the school year. The Senior School hosts an “Into the Sixth” Evening and an Open Evening during the Autumn Term each year and the Junior School holds a number of Open events during the year. Parents on the mailing list will be sent an invitation to these events, details can also be found in the local press and on this website under the Key Dates heading.

For parents of children registered for admission, the Head and her Senior Leadership Team host an informal Coffee Morning every term.

Families are encouraged to visit on a regular school day prior to an Admissions Day (these visits do not form part of the admissions procedure). A Senior School visit will include a guided tour with a member of the current Sixth Form and meeting with Ms Young, Director of Admissions & Marketing. A Junior School visit will include a tour and usually a meeting with Mrs Ellie Stacey, Head of Junior School, or the Deputy Head, Mrs Susan Young.

Please call me on 01865 318500 or contact me by e-mail at e.young@oxf.gdst.net with any enquiries you may have, or to request a visit to the Senior School.

To visit the Junior School please call 01865 558279 or e-mail to: oxfordhighjunior@oxf.gdst.net

Prospectus Requests and Registration for Admission

Parents are invited to request a copy of the School Prospectus using the request facility under ‘Request a Prospectus’ or from the Director of Admissions & Marketing, Ms Young. The registration form for admission is included with the prospectus package.

If you wish to register your child for admission, please complete the registration form and return it to Ms Young together with the non-returnable registration fee which is currently £90 for UK residents and £120 for overseas residents. Cheques should made payable to Oxford High School. Ms Young can provide details of payment by international bank transfer on request.

If you are intending to apply for a GDST Fee Bursary for entry to Year 7 or Year 12 and are currently in receipt of child tax credits, job seeker’s allowance or another form of state benefit, please speak to Ms Young to discuss the possibility of waiving the required registration fee.

Important Dates

For information about important dates in the admissions process please see the Key Dates section of the website or consult a current copy of the Prospectus.

The Junior School

   

The Junior School occupies two sites both within easy walking distance of each other and of the Senior School. Reception and Year 1 children are based at 90 Woodstock Road and pupils from Year 2 – Year 6 are based at 1 Bardwell Road. Formerly known as Greycotes and The Squirrel, the Girls’ Day School Trust purchased the two preparatory schools in 1997. For directions please see the How to Find Us section of the website.

Recent Changes

Oxford High School is an all-girls’ school throughout from September 2012.

From September 2012 there will be no further Nursery provision, the last Nursery intake having joined us in September 2011.

Reception

The first main entry point to the school is into Reception at 4+. Girls should have reached four years of age by 1st September in which they join the Reception classes.

There are no formal assessments for entry to Reception. Children are invited to attend an admissions morning or afternoon with their parents, as we like to meet families prior to offering places. Siblings of girls already in the school will receive priority offers. All other place offers will be made in date order of registration and early registration is recommended.

Year 1 entry

Children are assessed for entry to Year 1. They are invited to meet us for an admissions morning or afternoon and undertake a number of tasks and activities.

Year 2 entry

For entry to Year 2 children are invited to visit for an admissions assessment which will include a variety of tasks in English, Mathematics and Reasoning.

Year 3 – Year 6

Applications for places in Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 are very welcome as occasional places do come up. Please contact us for more information.

For entry to Years 3 – 6 girls are invited to visit for an admissions assessment which will include a variety of tasks in English, Mathematics and Reasoning.

Junior School Admissions Week is held in mid-January every year. Girls registered for occasional entry to Years 1 – 6 are invited to come in and meet Mrs Stacey and her staff for assessment during this week for possible entry in the following September. Please see the dates of the next Junior Admissions week under the Key Dates section of the website.

We are also happy to arrange an assessment for Junior School entry on an individual basis.

All candidates for assessment should be registered in advance. There are no scholarships or bursaries available for entry to the Junior School.

Transfer from the Junior to the Senior School is anticipated. Sometimes it may not be in a girl’s best interests to transfer, in which case the school will give sufficient notice and assistance to find an alternative, working closely with parents at all stages.

Please do consult the Head of the Junior School, Mrs Ellie Stacey, for further details of the admissions procedures for children into Year 1 and above.

The Senior School

 

The Senior School is situated in Belbroughton Road within a short walking distance of the two Junior School sites. For directions please see the How to Find Us section of the website.

Year 7 Entry

The Year 7 Admissions Day is held on a Saturday each January for entry to Year 7 (11+) in the following September. Girls who wish to attend should be registered for admission during the Autumn Term of Year 6.

The Admissions Day takes the form of a combined admissions and taster day, during which girls sit assessment papers in English, Maths and a multiple choice Reasoning paper including verbal and non-verbal, and participate in activities chosen from Art, Drama, Music and PE, with fun Science sessions for all. The activities do not form any part of the assessment process. All girls attending the Admissions Day are invited to attend for interview in the following week with the Head and other senior staff.

We welcome applications from girls from a very wide variety of Junior Schools, both independent and maintained.

Advance preparation is not recommended and past papers are not available. We set our own assessments every year, looking for potential as well as level of attainment.

Candidates should be registered in advance (we recommend the end of October in Year 6) the registration fee is £90 and £120 for non-UK residents. If you are intending to apply for a bursary and are currently in receipt of child tax credits, job seeker’s allowance or another form of state benefit, please speak to Ms Young to discuss the possibility of waiving the required registration fee.

Academic and Music Scholarships are offered at 10% of annual fees (rising to 15% of annual fees in the Sixth Form) and generous GDST Fee Bursaries (up to full fees) are available.

All candidates for the Year 7 admissions assessments are entered for the Academic Scholarships, which are awarded on merit based on performance in the admissions assessments and at interview. There is no separate scholarship examination or interview.

For Music Scholarships a separate application should be made. Candidates should be registered for entry prior to application. Girls are recommended to be working towards or have reached Associated Board Grade 5 on their principal instrument (which may include singing). All applicants are offered a preliminary audition after which shortlisted candidates are invited to return for a scholarship audition.

GDST Fee Bursaries are means-tested on parental income and assets. It is unlikely that a bursary would be awarded to a family whose annual income is greater than £40,000. Please see the Fees section of the website or contact Ms Young, the Director of Admissions & Marketing, who will be happy to provide further information. Candidates should be registered prior to application.

 

Year 8 and Year 9 Entry

Registered candidates are invited to visit for an Admissions Day, to be arranged on an individual basis, during which they undertake assessments in English, Mathematics and French or Mandarin, and are interviewed by the Head and the Deputy Head – Academic. For girls who cannot offer French or Mandarin, a Science paper covering Biology, Chemistry and Physics, will be set. We would expect candidates for entry to be prepared to catch up with French if this language is not currently studied. As Years 8 and 9 are not main entry points to the school, please speak to or e-mail Ms Young concerning likely place availability.

Year 10 Entry

As for Year 8 and 9 above together with an assessment in Chemistry.

Year 11

Admission is considered only in very exceptional circumstances.

Transfer from Year 11 to the Sixth Form is anticipated.

Sixth Form (Year 12) entry

 

Applications for Sixth Form places are very warmly welcomed from candidates from a wide variety of schools, both independent and maintained.

A visit to our “Into the Sixth” evening is strongly recommended or to the Senior School Open Evening (both held during the Autumn Term every year) and you may like to spend a taster day or half day with us so that you can gain a better idea of Sixth Form life and classes. You will be looked after by a Sixth Form student, often someone who has joined us in the Sixth Form, and you can visit Year 12 lessons of your choice.

All candidates should be registered in advance. If you are intending to apply for a bursary and are currently in receipt of child tax credits, job seeker’s allowance or another form of state benefit, please speak to Ms Young to discuss the possibility of waiving the required registration fee.

External applicants to the Sixth Form will be asked to meet the following minimum entry requirements.

At least 5 A*/A grades at GCSE/IGCSE including an A*/A in the subjects they want to study at A Level, if applicable, and a B or above in English Language and Mathematics.

 

Entry is by application (with references, including predicted GCSE/IGCSE grades), a short written task, and an interview with the Head, Head of Sixth Form and Deputy Head – Academic. A portfolio needs to be brought if Art related subjects are to be studied. We can offer you an entry morning or afternoon to suit you, but please bear in mind that if you wish to apply for a Sixth Form Scholarship or a GDST Fee Bursary you should be registered for entry by mid-October in Year 11. Some subject choices fill up rapidly, so early registration is recommended. It is anticipated that candidates will eventually secure top GCSE/IGCSE grades.

Academic, Art & Design, Drama, Head’s, Music and Sports Scholarships are available at 15% of annual fees and generous Fee Bursaries (up to full fees) are available. Fee bursaries are means-tested on parental income and assets. It is unlikely that a bursary would be awarded to a family whose annual income is greater than £40,000. Please see the Fees section of the website or contact Ms Young, the Director of Admissions & Marketing, who will be happy to provide further information.

The Sixth Form prospectus contains an outline of what we offer in Years 12 and 13, together with more details of the subjects and courses of study available (which can also be found under the AS/A Level Subjects heading on this website).

Our current Sixth Form students have written an alternative prospectus to be read alongside the Sixth Form prospectus.

Destinations of recent Sixth Form leavers can also be found under the Destination of Leavers heading.

To arrange a Taster visit or find out more, please call or e-mail Ms Young, the Director of Admissions & Marketing, on 01865 318500 or e.young@oxf.gdst.net