University and Apprenticeship Applications
As a student new to Presdales, we hope you will be looking forward to continuing your education after your GCSEs with a view to improving your prospects in terms of application to Higher Education.
The Sixth Form is a relatively short period in a student’s schooling and an important stepping stone on to the next phase in their lives. By the end of Year 12, you need to be considering your options regarding what you do next and, if this involves university, as it does in the majority of cases, making plans about UCAS.
You will receive guidance in your fortnightly form time careers sessions beginning in Year 12 to help you choose the best post-18 pathway for you. In Year 12 you will also go through the whole UCAS application cycle from writing personal statements to how to fill in the online UCAS form. All Year 12 are invited on a trip to a higher education exhibition. The school has also invested in Unifrog, an amazing tool which allows you to find the courses you are interested in along with reviews, entry requirements and much more information (this is also available to your parents).
We are also supported by an Oxbridge advisor who will assist you in the application process for these Universities. Potential Oxbridge candidates are identified early on in Year 12 and signposted to the wide range of super-curricular opportunities available that will bolster any future applications. We also run a series of mock interviews for Oxbridge candidates in Year 13.
University Applications
Application to university through UCAS is done in the Autumn term of Year 13, with certain applications (e.g. for medicine, veterinary science, law and Oxbridge) needing to meet an early deadline in October. To prepare for this, we provide instruction in UCAS procedures and the writing of personal statements in the summer term of Year 12.
Parents can help by talking through university plans with their sons/daughters and visiting potential university destinations with them in the summer term and summer holidays. To this end, universities organise open days to showcase themselves and their courses. We allow a maximum of five open days to be taken in term time (including both Year 12 and Year 13) to avoid affecting progress at school. However, most universities organise open days both during the week and at weekends.
We have an excellent track record of assisting students’ applications to some of the most prestigious universities and courses, including Oxford and Cambridge and the top Russell Group universities. Students regularly go on to study Medicine or Veterinary Medicine and we have a dedicated teacher who helps prepare you for the external entrance tests for these courses (the UKCAT, the BMAT etc.).
Last year, 88% of our students progressed to University education, with exceptions being those who choose to take a gap year, an Art Foundation course, an apprenticeship, or other work-based training scheme. All students are offered the same high level of support, regardless of their proposed destinations.
Please click below for the 2024 Year 13 University Destinations.
Apprenticeship Applications
We work very closely with advisers from Hertfordshire County Council Services for Young People to support all those wishing to start an apprenticeship or other work-based training scheme after their A Levels. Individual interviews are arranged from the very beginning of Year 12 to ensure our students are well informed about how to research these opportunities. A whole section of Unifrog is dedicated to apprenticeships which is constantly updated with new and exciting opportunities. A great deal of further help is given with application forms and interview support.
We are seeing a growing number of our Sixth Form students pursuing a post-18 apprenticeship pathway and are therefore continuously developing and adding to the support we provide for these students. Students are regularly signposted to apprenticeship opportunities as and when they go live for applications.
