Does my DD have ANY chance of getting a scholarship?

[desperate4spring]

Hi, I'm looking for some advice about independent school applications and hope someone with some experience can offer some insight.

We are considering applying as the only state secondary that we have any chance of getting into has a terrible reputation. It has a rough catchment area so pupil behaviour is bad and its results aren't great.

We cannot afford independent school fees and are aware that there are bursaries etc available but the scholarship application form has really worried me. Our DD is very bright but we moved her to a different primary school this year as her previous school was not challenging her at all. She was the most able in her class and was allowed to just coast. The school also didn't offer any extra-curricular opportunities (no sports teams, no school plays etc.)

We haven't been able to afford to send her to out-of-school dance/music classes, and so she doesn't have the experience needed for these types of scholarships. For example she has done a reasonably good job of teaching herself the keyboard using an app, but because we haven't paid for lesson, she has never taken any grades.

She is really bright and I KNOW that she would excel given the opportunities that an independent education would offer, but how do we show this when she hasn't yet had any of the opportunities?

Another factor is that she has 2 younger sisters who we would hope would follow in her footsteps.

Thanks for reading, I'm really grateful for any advice.

Sorry to be blunt op but you have three dc and you're hoping/banking on all 3 getting full scholarships? I assume full as you mentioned not being able to afford any extra curriculars.

I think that's highly unlikely.

What's the basis of the scholarship, usually they are eg music or science or sport etc based? If you need a full scholarship I wouldn't hold out much hope tbh, and any siblings won't get it because of the first one.

You need to speak to the admissions team and get all the info you can.

Sounds CD like she’d do great at the comprehensive, where the teachers are delighted to teach children with high potential, and she has her mother on side- always the most important factor on educational
Outcomes

Don't worry too much and just go for it. I know it's "anecdata" but a friend of mine had two very bright daughters- no extra opportunities as money was incredibly tight so the only "extra" thing they did was spend hours in the library. Independent school tests can spot raw talent and they will do verbal reasoning tests to spot that. Both her DDs got offered scholarships/full bursaries at two different schools. Just go for it and try to do some practice papers ahead of the assessments just so they get a feel for them.

I would look for/enquire about bursaries rather than scholarships. Scholarships rarely cover most/all fees but many schools do bursaries for 'children who would benefit'. Scholarships often cover say, music tuition rather than fees. Ask bursars rather than rely on info in brochures etc.
All 3 of my DC had bursaries and/or scholarship.
DS1 8-13 scholarship 95% of fees 13-18 97% Bursary
DS2 12-18 97% Bursary
DD 11-16 Free Place

You may not get them in the same school though. We also moved closer to DDs school. (council exchange)
The DC were looked down on more in their original state schools for being poor than they ever were in the indies!

Thanks for your responses.

It's so hard knowing that she has such potential and yet our financial circumstances mean that we can't afford to live near the schools that turn out the excellent results.

I know that supportive parents are the most significant factor, it's just easy to worry that we're limiting them by not exploring every option.

Thank you though. It's helped me to gain some perspective 😊

So are you looking for scholarships or bursaries ? - they are quite different. Scholarships are awarded for those who are very able or have potential. For girls private schools you're probably looking at 10-15% discount which although welcome still leaves you finding a big chunk of already taxed income. DD got a scholarship for 10% to last up to GCSEs. She had to re-apply for sixth form

Bursaries are awarded on basis of parental income, although the school may only offer bursaries to children who are very able. So the school will require a financial assessment. The bursary usually only covers a proportion of the basic fees - you'll still be looking to pay for some of the basic fee plus music / dance / outings / on top so still will cost you a lot of money.

You need to have a very honest and frank discussion with the school - how much are scholarships worth, what level of bursary will they cover and how much you will be expected to pay for basics and then for extras, including uniforms. Don't be re-assured with oh you'll find the money / you'll be fine. You need to know actual figures, because if you are planning to put 3 girls through private secondary school you could be looking at £4-5k per term, basic, so depending on ages there could be several years of fees of £45k of earnt income. You shouldn't assume that if one child gets a bursary they all will.

I'm laying it on a bit thick to manage your expectations- because funding private schooling is expensive, eye wateringly expensive. You comment about not being able to afford dance classes makes me think you may find this just too expensive.

As for your question about demonstrating she would thrive - look at the fact she's taught herself keyboards - so she's a self starter, shows determination and initiative.

I'm also a bit confused that you're stressing about scholarships - are there no suitable and accessible independent schools that offer bursaries irrespective of scholarship?

It's absolutely true, of course, that catchments can be as or more exclusive than having to pay fees.

The bursary usually only covers a proportion of the basic fees - you'll still be looking to pay for some of the basic fee plus music / dance / outings / on top so still will cost you a lot of money.

Nah! Perfectly possible to be awarded 100% bursaries. The wealthiest schools are most likely to offer the largest amounts of money.

In terms of the application form, hopefully there will be an opportunity to explain that you couldn’t afford to provide her with any musical tuition etc. I don’t think that would go against her at all.

On the application form, in the extra-curricular section, she could talk about a love of reading including what authors/genres, numbers, studying how things work, or other free activities. Libraries often run free coding clubs. She could learn dancing on you-tube, or learn how to code Scratch if you have a computer. She could teach her siblings, or lead them into producing a play at home. Cooking, maybe growing her own herbs. Just some ideas, it would be better to write something than nothing.

However, in your shoes I would be looking to move house to catchment of a better state school for the sake of the other 2 children.

Even if that means sacrificing a house for a flat, and barely seeing extended family.

It sounds like a very risky strategy to bank on getting 3 x 100% scholarships.

I see you have said you can’t afford to live near a better school. Is that within the whole country, or are you tied to a locality for some reason?

I think if you had one child the independent school would be definitely worth pushing for - She sounds very bright and would have a good chance, but as other pp’s have said you’d need to check exactly what was covered by the scholarship/bursary, down to details like uniform. Also the chances of 3 getting in… and the consequences of 2 getting in and 1 not…

Best to move near a good comp or grammar so there is a good backup plan and then also by all means try for an independent scholarship too.

I would recommend you to move to somewhere around good state schools or grammar area. Your DC1 sounds very bright but her full bursary/scholarship is not a golden ticket for your other DCs to get the same offers. It is huge pressure for your children and yourself until all your children secure their places.

Many schools base academic scholarships on performance in the entrance test rather than needing to apply specifically for one. Cocurricular ones are by application and the threshold will vary. Although they may say it is based on potential clearly those with demonstrable aptitude in music or drama and used to performing, for example, will have an advantage. Increasingly these are token fee discounts or an award of free lessons for example, but come with obligations to commit to perform in music ensembles, sports teams etc. If there is a junior school you may well find the majority of awards go to internal applicants.

A bursary is based on assessment of income and assets and can be reassessed each year , so no clear security. Think about what might happen if she passed the entrance but did not get an award large enough to make it viable, or if one sibling did and another did not, or she got her place and scholarship but you still could not fund extras.