7+ 2024/25

[Caps0218]

I haven't seen another thread similar to previous years, so thought it would be beneficial to start one as exams are now 1 month away.
I think SHHS, UCS, KCJS and WUS are all in October.

Also - Curious to see if number of applicants are down this year, with Labour's VAT raid.

My DS had two scores above 60% and two scores below 60%.
WUS told me that they don’t give the score range or the placement of candidates.
My sense and likely contentious speculation of a reason for this is that if you come from a non-feeder for these top schools you need to perform better, possibly because you’d be part of a smaller sub-set of outsider candidates? I started wondering about this after my DS asked why his current school’s name was written on the front of his papers for both WUS and King’s.

DS did one yellowbird mock and I found that eye-opening as you’re given the % of each candidate in each discipline (obviously with no names) and several children scored 90-100% for multiple tests. I can understand if it was for mental maths or dictation, but was seriously impressed that some children scored 100% for the maths paper or 95% for English.

I wouldn't lose hope (certainly I'm not), especially with SPJ coming up. Their English assessment focus more on the 'technical' aspects compared to WUS. They adjust comprehension for age (as part of the reasoning paper) and the main English test is dictation, which you can do very well if you are bright and prepped/drilled well!

Hi @NwLdnmum , just wondered when you say 60% in comprehension do you mean 60% in first round English? The feedback we receive from WUS only says English, no comprehension explicitly.

My DS got into the second round at WUS with everything between 60-70%, but unfortunately falling behind the curve on Creative Writing and Spelling.

My apologies, I meant English for the first round (my mind is very much in comprehension these days!)! To clarify, the scores and thresholds I was given was in reference to the 1st round, not the 2nd round.

Thank you!
Our top choices are definitely in North London (Highgate/UCS) and potentially City or Habs so I am hoping that the relatively low scores he got at WUS were only a reflection of how hard WUS was rather than his actual level.

I agree with your second paragraph. This process, particularly the mock results that allow us to observe the performance of others, has made me realize that there are many truly able children who are brighter than my son at this age.

Therefore, I do not dwell on the reasons why my son may not have passed these exams, such as our distance from the schools, the school he attends, the lack of sibling preference, insufficient tutoring, or a bad day. I believe the most apparent reason is that he simply did not meet the required level.

Many students in these schools have received recognition for their achievements in poetry competitions, essay competitions, Junior Mathematical Olympiad, chess, and other areas. Deep down, I now understand that my son may not be among them. While he may gain admission to one of these schools, if he does not, it might be better for him to avoid spending his childhood and teenage years surrounded by exceptionally bright individuals.

We didn’t apply for WUS (for distance reason) but only for KCS and SPJ along with some second-tier schools. The test feedback we received from KCS indicated that our DS has 'nicely done' in reasoning and listening, although no percentages were provided. However his math % was significantly below our expectations.
When we asked for clarification about the term "nicely done," the school replied that KCS uses a unique reasoning and listening test and does not quantify the results numerically. They mentioned that if his math scores had been slightly stronger, he might have progressed to the second stage as his reasoning & listening was above average. So difficult to understand the selection proceedure. Furthermore I’m curious whether KCS obtains school reports before the assessment fom current school. In our case, our current school usually informs us if they are approached but I never heard anything from them about KCS contacting them.

@daddy888 It seems WUS have an absolute minimum score you need to get to in order to get to 2nd stage. 82% in Maths and English at 58% did not get through, but mid 60s across the board did. That is very interesting.

We did EPP mocks and yes there are a few very bright boys, I saw the same parents who were at the mock at KCJS and WUS exams, there are a handful of these kids, so it should not put you off and they cant all go to all 3 schools.

SPJS is a more technical exam, with no writing and as far as I am aware a short comprehension that is part of reasoning. Writing is part of the 2nd stage as well as more maths. SPJS has always been for more mathematical kids, than WUS.

I think Highgate and City will certainly be a lot easier, and many of these top boys will not be applying there. Wetherby seem to only prepare for the top 3 boys schools.

I have been informed by the parents at WUS that the passing marks vary for different subjects. I understand that this is natural, as different papers have different levels of difficulty. Additionally, there are weightings between the papers, by age, and other factors that we will never know about. The mathematics teacher mentioned during an open day that they carefully examine which questions the candidates answer correctly and how they do so, not just the number of marks they receive. I can only imagine this is true for other papers that they take more qualitative approach. In any case, on to the next exam!

@user14809753 That sounds plausible, although requires a lot of time! Still surprised they didn't ask that boy to come back with such a high maths.

Next exam on Saturday

Also if SPJS are really going to ignore 1st round scores when choosing kids after the 2nd round, it won't be good for us if we get that far as creative writing is our weakest part.

The creative writing bit of second round was one of the things that let us down with SPJ last year during 7+ so they do take it seriously

Please absolutely do not assume that all boys in these schools are geniuses, math Olympiad stars and chess prodigy. There are a few brilliant boys in each year but the vast majority are obviously brighter than unprepped average UK 6-7 year old, but otherwise just normal kids. I spoke to SPJS parents, to WUS parents and yes, there are extremely hardworking super motivated kids but they are never in majority.
Happy to be corrected by other parents.

So please don’t be disheartened, if your son is happy to give it another go please try again! So many kids are successful a bit later. ♥️♥️♥️

San2023, Kings 100% asked your son’s current school for the report. They mentioned it as part of their assessment and were requesting reports at the end of September.

I agree, the 2nd stage is important. However I am surprised they said to you decision is based on 2nd stage alone.

Thats what my understanding was from open day at KCS. I will check with current school personally.

I called them yesterday, you could call them and ask the same question but it made sense. She said to me we don't look at their rankings as we know that they are academic enough based on the fact that they passed. What we want to see is how they get on in a classroom setting etc

Your opinion aligns exactly with the advice given by successful pre-prep schools and successful tutors—against using the 7+ exam as practice for the 8+ exam. If a child is not at the appropriate level for the 7+ exam, they have a much better chance of success by waiting and taking the 8+ exam for the first time, rather than leaving a record of not having done well at 7+ for whatever reason.

I don't doubt what you say. Good to know!

@user14809753 A child can simply have a bad day, they are only 6/7...surely this won't be held against them? Rather unfair I feel.

However the ethnic rebalancing does seem correct, spoke to parents at WUS and they also have heard that the school wants to have a more diverse ethnic mix. City juniors still sponsor visas, which ties in how there is a very Chinese feel to the school.

It is understandable. It is true that there is not a great diversity among the exam candidates in these schools. However, the selection process ultimately determines the composition of the student body. In this regard, WUS and King's seem to have achieved greater ethnic diversity compared to SPJ. I also noticed during the SPJ open day that a significant portion of the student population may be of Asian descent. This could potentially be linked to SPJ's reputation for being more welcoming to students who are better in mathematics than English, or it could be due to the catchment area... Anyway, it's to worry about only if my son gets an offer....

@user14809753 I think by saying that the offers will be based on the 2nd round, is giving the school the freedom to "massage" the ethnic ratios. They will likely still use 1st round scores, but as another poster mentioned that a significant portion of the top 30 will be of Chinese origin, this way they can perhaps choose the top 10-15 and then look for a more diverse mix. At the same time they will also not want a huge block of kids from one particular school. I believe Wetherby only received 6 offers for WUS.

might all be just rumors and wishful thinking by lot of us parents. While schools may have internal goals for diversity but ethnic balancing as a formal or informal selection method is risky and unlawful. If they were found to be favouring or disadvantaging certain groups based on ethnicity in their final decisions, it could be legally challenged. They are answerable to the ISI and equality laws, but surely not to us.

Anyone sitting the UCS 7+ in January? If so, any idea on format and content? Website says English and Maths - nothing about whether this is administered on computers or written. Have asked school but they say information will be sent in December however we want to try and prepare a bit earlier.