Careers/ Higher Education Advice

Careers advice starts in Year 9 when children choose their GCSE options, and it is not too early to start thinking about Higher Education at this stage. The school’s Careers Coordinator is available to help and guide parents and pupils.

Higher Education advice begins in earnest in Year 11 when the choice of AS/A2 subjects is discussed as part of planning for the Sixth Form. Subject choices made in Year 9 and Year 11 inevitably have a significant influence on decisions about university entrance, which are very fully discussed in Year 12 prior to making applications in the Autumn Term of Year 13. The UCAS Centigrade individual assessment and information system and a visit to a higher education fair are offered to BCS Sixth Form students. We have within our own staff specialists who can give guidance on university entrance, including preparatory talks at the end of Year 12 and practice one-to-one sessions on university interviews. We also work with colleagues in other schools for additional guidance on Oxford and Cambridge entrance.

As part of their Sixth Form enrichment programme, BCS students are guided on how to get the most out of University Open Days, and are trained in the skills needed to write their university application and to participate effectively in university (and job) interviews. An information evening is held in the Summer Term of Year 12 to explain the UCAS process and provide information about higher education. In Year 13, the student’s tutor and the Head of Sixth Form guide them through the UCAS system and personally produces each student’s Higher Education reference. The majority of students are successful in gaining places at their chosen university or employment.