King's School Canterbury review by University of Oxford student.
Classes are usually streamed according to ability, which gets the maximum potential from students. 3 days a week you have 8 lessons of 35 minutes, and 3 days a week you have 6 lessons of 35 minutes. These are split up by Assembly first thing in the morning every day, a break mid-morning, a break at lunch, and often sport or an activity (anything from sailing to trombone classes) during the afternoon. You then have supper and time off, but every evening in house you have what is called "prep" where you go back to your desks in your dorms and do 1 hour 45 minutes of individual, set work. This is usually supervised in some way, but is relaxed way of getting things done. The classes are small compared to most schools in the UK, and the more advanced you get in your subject, the smaller they become. For A-levels I had maximum 10 people in each set. This makes for a FANTASTIC working environment. Teaching depends very much on subject, but the staff range from fresh, enthusiastic university graduates, to enthusiastic old-timers who know the system inside out, and can work kids to their full potential. The facilities are second to none. Boarding houses are equipped amazingly with new kitchens, bathrooms, huge dorms. Kids have loads of space, and the added bonus that the school is built around the cathedral makes for a stunning setting. Sports facilities are a walk away, but are all very up to date, new pavillions, pitches etc.
I think at King's your house master/mistress and tutors watch you from the day you.... Get the real inside story on college counseling at King's School Canterbury as experienced by former pupil and University of Oxford student — Login or Sign Up to access full review
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They have contacts at most of the major universities and feel perfectly comfortable picking up the phone and advocating for a student to get accepted somewhere they feel is a good fit for that student. However, these counselors are certainly not magic bullets. They cannot guarantee that a student will get into an Ivy League university...
For those wishing to move on to Oxford or Cambridge, the provision is second-to-none. In the months running up to application and interview, every subject faculty offers classes (often run by former Oxbridge tutors) exploring further areas of their subject as well as offering advice on personal statements, interview technique and more...
You enter either by sitting Common Entrance 13+ exams, or by sitting the Scholarship exams..... Get in-depth insights and personal advice on admissions to King's School Canterbury by former pupil and University of Oxford student — Login or Sign Up to access full review
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For the interview, dress conservatively. Try to be very clean and put together. Also, I was a tour guide for two years and at the end of every tour, we were asked to evaluate the candidate so if you think the tour is not apart of the process, you are very wrong. Ask questions and be interested. Also, tip for the parents: the kids speak on the tour. Do not ask their questions for them...
Most younger siblings have an easy time in the admissions process. I can only think of one case of a younger sibling not being admitted. About half of the students who entered with me had come from public schools. The remainder came from private K-6 schools, or had transferred from other New York private schools The Elizabeth Morrow School and St. Bernard were two of the larger feeder schools...
It is in a city which means you sometimes have trouble walking around the town, but no more than anywhere else in the UK. The security is excellent, and there are regular "check-ins" before prep, assembly, lessons etc. Housing in Boarding Houses is excellent, there is good pastoral care from matrons (one per house) and your house mistress, and a team of tutors is assigned to each house. Campus is spread out within the Cathedral walls, and most of the buildings are old, stone or flint - a bit like Harry Potter. Food is in a huge dining hall -.... Get the real inside story on quality of school life and extracurricular offerings at King's School Canterbury as experienced by former pupil and University of Oxford student — Login or Sign Up to access full review