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Secondary education

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Original poster

Winchester College Open Day

80 replies

timmytoes · 07/06/2012 17:03

We are off, en famille, to visit Winchester College this weekend at their annual open day. I know that not everyone rates the day as useful but we are going to try to get the best out of it . Does anyone have any tips that might be useful specifically re our visit so we can decide whether it is worth going back for a more tailored visit early next term.

OP posts:
Colleger · 15/06/2012 19:30

Karobar,

How funny that you are surprised but the intake as I thought it was very known about the school. Many prep Heads would say that 50% are "quirky"!

karobar · 15/06/2012 20:41

Colleger - I don't think I ask the right questions! I assumed the head had suggested we look at WC because of DS's intelligence, didn't think he was matching it for his learning support requirements because they haven't even managed to address these properly :( Thinking about it and knowing more than I did, so many very intelligent people also have learning difficulties or some such thing that they often go hand in hand. Possibly more unusual not to have the quirky side attached! Was Winchester your top choice and are you going to run with it now he has a confirmed place?

Colleger · 15/06/2012 20:57

I sent you a pm, unless I've send it to someone else - I did that the other day! Blush

Our route will be slightly different as we are home educating so I won't know if we've met the entrance requirements until March 2014. If he was in a prep then they would be able to tell me. It's not that he won't pass it's more, will he hit the ground running? I wouldn't want him to be at the bottom. The difficulty though is that there are lots of myths about the WC intake and it's always made out, by parents, that all the boys are genii. My son has academic strengths in other areas to his very intelligent brother so I think I assume he's not that clever. In saying that his Latin tutor thinks he'll be well ahead in classics. I need to sort out other tutors now as his mother is tres thick!

Colleger · 15/06/2012 21:02

And the head would have been matching it for intelligence, SPLD and quirks. Quirks are great! :D

Where else is he interested in?

Another point to those who are interested in Win entrance. Pick the housemaster wisely. It's not just about who you get on with, although this is, of course, important. DS1 was interviewed by a Physics Don and he was able to show just how able he was. Had it been an English Don then it would have been a very different story. The same for DS2 who is very good with languages and English but more average with maths. Had he been interviewed by a Physics Don then I doubt they would have connected as well. I'd say this is the only potential downside to the admissions process but, on the whole, it is the best admissions process I've seen amongst the boys boarding schools.

oldgreyknickertest · 15/06/2012 21:19

We were asked which house we wanted to apply for. Although Ds' cousins are at one, we didn't necessarily think it would be right for Ds. So we told the school what his interests were and they suggested a house where the housemaster shared his passions. They clicked immediately. If you don't have a house in mind I suggest you do the same.

Colleger · 15/06/2012 21:31

With other school admissions I've often chosen housemasters with differing interests to enrich and expand my child's mind but with the Winchester admissions process, I'd avoid this if you want the best chance of getting your child a place.

karobar · 15/06/2012 23:14

I think we missed a trick being so late in the entrance process, we hadn't even looked at WC before we met the housemaster. my son's strength is science and the housemaster who intervirpewed my son wasn't a scientist. He was given Ozymandias to analyse which he didn't really 'get' and I can't imagine he sold himself very well to the master as he probably wasn't very interested in Shelley and would have felt unimpressed with such a piece to showcase his brain!

I totally agree that quirks are great but not so good at this age and when you are incarcerated in a trad prep school! If we had known how clever he was we would not have chosen the prep school. Come the revolution and quirky will win out over who you know, where you went and what you got if you see what I mean....

We are open to any schools, preferably south of England with full boarding if possible. He was keen on boys' schools but limits choice and we are open to any school which will cater for both his brain and the way he works.

All advice very gratefully received, as is advice on how to cope with prep school who can't cope with the way our boy works! :(

Colleger · 15/06/2012 23:20

You can home ed him for two years Chez Colleger if you wish! Wink

Colleger · 15/06/2012 23:21

Bruern Abbey would have been a good place for him and they have sent boys to Winchester.

karobar · 15/06/2012 23:22

Hysterical! Where is young colleger based? We are in sticks at moment. pm if easier..

Colleger · 15/06/2012 23:23

I've already pm'd but you don't notice them!

karobar · 15/06/2012 23:24

I contacted Bruern abbey and have sent his EPA. Must chase them up as have heard nothing and that was weeks ago....

karobar · 15/06/2012 23:25

Am new to this game, I did pm you a reply about 10 mins ago, hope it arrived?

Colleger · 15/06/2012 23:26

Do call them, probably bad timing with half term and common entrance this week. I'd make them aware that Winchester is the goal.

happygardening · 16/06/2012 06:35

karobar I really think before you do anything else you need to speak to Winchester and try and establish what you DS chances are of coming off the waiting list and remember we talking not just off the waiting list but also into a house you and he likes. As far as I've understand Winchester unlike Eton offers all it's places out and there are already boys who've been offered places who don't have houses yet because I'm assuming they are waiting to see whose going to turn down a place. Speak to them all the comments above are very helpful but to actually get a realistic picture you need to speak to them. I would also advise you to speak to head of learning support as well like all parents we want our children to be happy and when they require help due to dyslexia ADD or what ever we need IMO to be extra sure that the school is a good fit as will the school. Don't be under any illusions Winchestr in dyslexic etc friendly but the boys are expected to work very hard and achieve good results.

Colleger · 16/06/2012 09:26

I'm assuming a housemaster will not necessarily offer his quota if many boys don't impress him? I thought the boys in the pool numbered an equivalent to College as 14 places will become available then - no?

happygardening · 16/06/2012 16:47

As far as I'm aware the housemasters offer out the full quota infact we were very definitely given the impression that they offer out quite a lot more than their quota eg 18 offers for only 12 places knowing that some will drop out. My DH was told by one HM that right up until the Easter before the sitting the entrance exam he still had all 18 definately coming and he was looking at investing in bunk beds! This maybe why my friends very bright quirky DS never got off the waiting list! Yes 14 places extra places will come up as those boys will go into College but maybe those places have been offered out already but perhaps with as yet no particular house.
OP my advise stays the same speak to the school and then you will get a true picture.

Colleger · 16/06/2012 17:36

In that case I feel even more fortunate!

Eton don't do this. They offer 125 places and 50 waiting list places. I'm assuming it's because very few people turn down a place so no need to overfill.

Colleger · 19/06/2012 08:51

Just had the letter from Winchester and it states that if a place is not accepted by September 1st then the place will be offered to someone on the waiting list. So maybe they don't over offer.

happygardening · 19/06/2012 08:56

Interesting we only had a couple of weeks from receiving the offer to decide whether or not we wanted it and certainly well Eton places were offered.

Colleger · 19/06/2012 09:08

So did we the first time round. They've asked for the end of June if possible but by September 1st at the very latest. It is good of them because it avoids parents paying one deposit and then losing it. It's a pity all schools weren't like this as Winchester seems to be thinking in the best interests of the parent and not their bank balance.

happygardening · 19/06/2012 09:12

Why they don't all make offers with the same deadlines I don't know.

Colleger · 19/06/2012 11:44

I think the bigger schools struggle to get their exam results out before the end of term and I think it's easier for a school like Westminster and Winchester to pick boys. On the whole it's on academic merit and they will give the benefit of the doubt to a quirky boy. The admissions process is so in depth, at least at Winchester, that the HM/Reg knows by the end of it if the boy should be offered a firm place.

With Eton, all the applicants are very different and they probably spend more time deliberating giving a place to a gifted academic or a high-flying sports man, or the child who is good at everything but has Aspergers. They had close to 1000 applicants this year.

Then Harrow tests in Year 7, maybe because children can't all be in the same place at once. Many will sit for E, W, WC, H and a co-ed choice and at least three of the Pre-tests happen in the same term.

Colleger · 19/06/2012 11:47

And when it comes to Eton and Harrow I wonder if Harrow doesn't want time wasters at the test if the applicant has Eton as a first preference. At least the applicant will know in advance and probably pull out of the Harrow test if successful at Eton.

Firocoda · 20/06/2012 09:14

A bit off topic here, but I'm wondering whether anyone could give me some insight into a particular house at Win Coll? DS applied this year and was offered a place not in the house of choice but in another house, which we didn't visit. We're happy of course but slightly confused because my understanding was that he really should have been put on the Headmaster's List and assigned to a house later on.
Someone with a bit of knowledge told me that this house is probably the unpopular house and that the housemaster is not well-liked, etc., so they're trying to fill it up. I don't want to say the name of the house here, but if anyone could offer insight into the houses, please could you send me a PM? Headmaster of prep school is making inquiries, and I'm asking around IRL too of course.

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