Winchester, Westminster, or Eton?

[PGWo]

Our son is currently at prep school. He will be starting secondary school in two years. He is a very intelligent child who consistently gets good marks, and his favourite recreation is reading. He is indifferent to sport. Thus, we thought a school that is unashamedly academic would be best for him. The head has recommended Winchester or Westminster. They both sound great, but our son is worried that Winchester is too connected to Oxford, and he is leaning towards Cambridge. As for Westminster, apparently they only have boarding throughout the week, which is an issue for us because I live and work on the continent.
Even though Eton is not as academic, a relative suggested looking into having our son sit for the King's Scholar test. I know it is very hard.
For anyone who knows, how is the lifestyle different for the scholars and commoners in these three schools?

[BasiliskStare]

@michaelahpurple - I would definitely back you up on this - admissions departments are so helpful DS was a late entrant - @PGWo - phone admissions for the schools you are thinking of if your son is out of the norm. They will advise. But I still hold to get the school first & then work from that. Do not assume that school A will get you into University B . Also do not assume that by the time it comes to the choice your son will want University B. Give him his teenage years to make a choice as to what he wants to do - he is the one who will have to live with it. Right - apple pie anyone

[Musmerian]

Oakham and Gordonstoun are a very different kettle of fish from Westminster and Winchester which are much more academic and liberal.

[Xiaoxiong]

I'm hoping from what is in the OP, that the son is at a prep school here in the UK and the head has actually recommended Winchester or Westminster to suit the boy, that these age issues have been ironed out. Otherwise the OP might be in for a bit of a nasty shock.

[LeFaye]

Is he at a London prep? It doesn't seem like they're doing what you're paying them for.

At 11, he should really have taken the pre tests this winter that just passed. On what would he apply to Westminster or Eton? (I don't know how Winchester works, but I'm guessing they'd also have pre tests).

Apply to them all if you can, and see which he gets into. Also add a few backups.

Which school will suit him will depend on much more than academics. My eldest son chose between Westminster and Dulwich College in the end and opted for Dulwich. On paper Westminster might have been fancier and with a slightly higher Oxbridge rate, but the brightest kids will get into wherever they want anyway- the percentage is completely irrelevant, and the important thing is that they are choosing a school where they will spend their teenage years.

Such a crucial part of their upbringing will be spent at secondary school, and that gut feeling is so important.

I

[GameOfFrowns]

I’m an Oakham mum and I can assure you that my son and his friends are lovely.

[GeorgeTheBleeder]

Ah - I've known one or two former Oakham boys. Their mothers are lovely ...

[LeFaye]

Having read the full thread now, I really suggest you take professional advice. We’ve used Gabbitas before and we are very happy with them.

One of our sons also started school late, for similar reasons (we don’t speak English at home and he didn’t have the right tools at 4 to start school). But when he did start, he went straight into the “right” year - partly to avoid confusion at the 13+ stage.

So if your son started two years later, he should have started straight into Y2, and if your prep advised you to start from Reception instead, I’d stop taking their advice immediately.

And, if he’s two years older than his classmates, how good a grasp does the teachers really have on his ability for his age? Of course he’ll seem “very intelligent” compared to other children in the same year, he’ll have two extra years of maturity.

You have two options: Either keep him in year and have him start secondary in Y9, knowing that it will take a lot of the schools out of the race (neither of those you mention will accept boys his age into Y9. For Westminster they have a strict 12 month age bracket for the kids starting).

Or you can tutor him intensely to catch him up on Y6 and Y7 curriculum to have him sit 13+ at the right age. Most schools will accept this, although you do need to speak to the admissions office as he’ll already have missed the pre tests. Your prep head should help you with this, but as they seem to have been useless so far, you might want to book meetings yourself and get selling...

It’s a tough situation, and it’s absolutely worth hiring an Education Specialist to help you sort it. Like, now!

[GameOfFrowns]

Why, thank you George. I am, indeed, rather lovely and I shall make a marvellous MIL.

[Ohallright]

Winchester still has links with New College Oxford, but It has been a very long time since all students at New College had to be Wykehamists 😆 the only links are now at governor level and that the entrance gates are extraordinarily similar. I’m sure the Eton/Cambridge set up is the same.
Guess what? Eton and Winchester are both brilliant schools, with beautiful locations. Oxford and Cambridge are great universities in scenic towns.

My son and I chose Winchester, rather than Eton, as it was the school he “fitted” best. He chose Oxford as it was renowned for the subject he wanted to study. If he had wanted to study NatSci, he would have applied to Cambridge. Both schools and Universities are great, but I would think you should look for a good fit on the school, before you think about University. Maybe at least until GCSEs are over.

[BasiliskStare]

@Ohallright - are you trying to be sensible - ha ha Very good - & very sensible IMHO No way nowadays will a 500 year old connection to a college from a school get you in if you aren't good enough. & indeed many of these boys ( and indeed pupils from all sorts of schools ) positively choose to go elsewhere than Oxbridge

[Genevieva]

To get accurate advice on this thread, you would do well to tell your readers how old your son will be on 1st September 2019 and what your you envisage him starting at one of these schools (eg September 2021).

All the schools listed send a lot of students to top universities in the UK and overseas for all manner of subjects. However, they have also always taken student from more modest backgrounds who had less prestigious schooling. Isaac Newton was one of them.

You will find, however, that the university admissions staff at Oxford and Cambridge have a nose for children who feel entitled to a place there and don't take too kindly to it. Consequently, on arrival a good percentage of students say to one another 'I think they must have made a mistake have they offered me a place'. Someone told me that they were convinced that someone would knock on their door and tell them there had been a terrible mistake and boot them out. After a few weeks everyone settles in, realises that their insecurities are unfounded and that everyone is there because they love their subject and love learning. The only entitled toff on my course in my year didn't make it to the summer exams.

[ForeverbyJudyBlume]

I don't believe a word of this OP and think it's all a wind-up.

[LeFaye]

Yeah, at this point my only advice to OP is that next time you want to play pretend elitist - make sure you read up on the right ages and dates.