Academic scholarships at Guildford High School

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Hi, our DD is in yr4 and very bright. We are considering Guildford High for the secondary but can't afford the full price (and we won't fit the criteria of bursaries). Does anyone have experience or won an academic scholarship at Guildford High? This is to get a sense if the 30% academic scholarship is achievable or not at all. Many thanks.

Is that just for academic or academic and music combined? The site isn't clear. There was a poster a few years back whose daughter had come top in the GHS exam and she was deciding vs a Tiffin offer so maybe worth searching for that? 30% would be very high for just an academic scholarship at a top school- without a bursary they are usually less than that.

Thanks. It is for an academic only. The GHS website seems to suggest that academic scholarships can go up to 30%, but I was wondering if this ever happens, or maybe only one child gets it a year?

I knew of a dd who got an academic scholarship at Guildford high last year worth 1/3 off. No idea how many others got it but they do exist!

There are very few academic scholarships given each year - perhaps 3 or 4 in a year group of over 100. Your DD would therefore need to be one of the very top to get one. Also, it is done simply on the results in the entrance exam and the interview on the exam day, so it could be very few marks in practice that separate the scholarship girls from the rest. It's possible, but don't bank on it!

Thanks. This is super helpful. I now know that they do exist but are super hard to get. I didn't know they were solely based on the exam day. I will have to learn about the exam day and what tests are required. I am taking my daughter to visit the school soon, but it will be up to her to put in the effort for the preparation. We are using the Bond books. She doesn't want to be tutored at this stage but we may have to consider it.

If you look at the websites for the prep schools Rowan Preparatory School and Holy Cross Preparatory school and search the senior school destinations/ offer charts you will see that they gain about 1 GH scholarship per year.

Bond is a good a place as any to start but as you increase the standard and your DD gets closer to Y6 there are some great past 11+ papers from the consortium schools, Manchester Grammar, St Paul's etc that will give you a better idea of what is required of the very top performers when they sit these exams. Bond is nowhere close. Best of luck!

Many thanks. This is super useful. I have just looked at these paper exams but we will tackle them next year. My DD is in a state school, although a good one, it does not cover the top end of the requirements. My DD does hoemwork at home as self study using Bond books but these exams papers may well require a tutor. It just occured to me, these scholarships, are they just for year 7 or for the 5 years up to GCSE?