Secondary Education: Independent Schools

To apply to a U.K. independent (private secondary) school, you need to have a high grade point average and may need to take the school’s entrance exam in subjects such as English and math. To begin a two-year course (grades 11 and 12, generally) to prepare for the A-level exams, you need to have completed 11 years of school and usually must be at least 16 years old.

Career-based and Foundation Studies

The admissions requirements for career-based study vary according to the type of course you want to study. Some qualifications (such as the BTEC National Diploma) are below university level and have less rigorous requirements than others (such as HNDs and Foundation Degrees) which are university-level qualifications that will enable you to join a degree course in the second or third year. The requirements for different types of career-based and Foundation studies are as follows:

Undergraduate Study (Bachelor’s degree)

In addition to completing the application for admission provided by the individual university, applicants for undergraduate study are also required to have either the equivalent of two or three A-levels, a BTEC National Diploma or an International Foundation Year. The minimum IELTS score for admission into most institutions is 6.0-6.5.

Post-graduate Study

Requirements for admission into post-graduate degree programs are as follows:

Testing

The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is the name of a set of British exams taken by secondary school students at age 14 to16. (In Scotland, however, students take the Standard Grade exams, also called O grades, which are roughly the equivalent of the GCSE although considered slightly more difficult because subjects are studied in greater detail in a shorter time frame).  GCSE courses are taken in a variety of subjects, which are usually decided by the students themselves between the ages of 13 and 14 ). Students study their chosen subjects at age 14 and take the GCSE final examinations at age 16, upon which they receive letter grades. A* (pronounced A star) is the highest possible grade and G the lowest, while U indicates failure in the course. Receiving five or more A*-C grades is often a requirement for taking A-levels.

GCSE A-level exams

The A-level, short for Advanced Level, is a General Certificate of Education qualification in the U.K. It is taken by students in the final two years of secondary education, at ages 17-18. A-levels are taken in a wide variety of subjects in the maths, sciences, liberal arts, languages and so o­n. A-levels are often the prerequisite for university-level study, although international students with a high school diploma are usually not required to take A-level exams.  In Scotland students take the Higher Grade exams (known as Highers) rather than the A-levels, which are the school-leaving certificate exams and university entrance qualifications of the Scottish Qualifications Certificate.

IELTS exam

International students who wish to study at universities in the U.K. must take the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) exam, which measures ability to communicate in English across four language skills – listening, reading, writing and speaking. This exam is designed for people who intend to study or work where English is the language of communication.

The IELTS exam is administered in two or three test sessions every month at the IDP and at the British Council. A computer-based version is now available.  For further information, including exam fees, visit www.ielts.org .