Year 3 

• Thinking and reasoning skills are introduced as a weekly timetabled lesson to develop skills in verbal and non-verbal reasoning (these skills often form part of the entrance tests for senior schools, or pre-tests). 

Year 4 

• Do try to attend the welcome evening in September for an introduction to entrance to senior schools at 13+. This includes a briefing on the process from the Deputy Head Academic, as well as a chance to meet representatives from a variety of senior schools. We tend to encourage parents from Year 5 and up to attend the ‘carousel’ with senior schools, but parents with boys in Year 4 who are interested in senior schools may find it useful to attend. All parents are very welcome.  

• At this stage it would be useful to start to consider which type of senior school you are interested in for your son (e.g. single sex or mixed; day or boarding). 

• Parents, especially those thinking about boarding schools, are welcome to book an appointment with the Headmaster and/or Deputy Head Academic to discuss potential appropriate future schools (office@newcollegeschool.org; 01865 285560). 

• A guide to our most popular senior schools is available from the school office. 

• Thinking and reasoning skills continue to be taught in a weekly timetabled lesson to develop skills in verbal and non-verbal reasoning. The core skills in English and Maths, which will later be assessed in pre-tests, are of course taught as a matter of course in day-to-day lessons. 

Year 5 

• At the start of Michaelmas, if parents have not yet attended our introduction to entrance to senior schools at 13+, they are encouraged to attend. Parents are welcome to come more than once! This includes a briefing on the process from the Deputy Head Academic, as well as a chance to meet representatives from a variety of senior schools. 

• If parents have not already done so, it would be useful to consider which type of senior school you are interested in for your son (e.g. single sex or mixed; day or boarding). Take a look at senior school websites. It is a good idea to start touring potential senior schools with your sons, so you are able to see what they have to offer first-hand and to get a ‘feel’ for each school. On these visits, representatives from individual senior schools are able to give the most detailed and up-to-date information about the entry processes. 

• Check registration deadlines for schools you are interested in. Some of the larger boarding schools require you to register your son by the end of Year 5. 

• If they have not already done so, parents are welcome to book an appointment with the Headmaster and/or Deputy Head Academic to discuss potential appropriate future schools (office@newcollegeschool.org; 01865 285560). 

• Thinking and reasoning skills continue as a weekly timetabled lesson to develop skills in verbal and non-verbal reasoning. An online resource called Planet BOFA is introduced to boys. 

• In Trinity further sessions are introduced to develop assessment skills. The core skills in English and Maths, which will later be assessed in pre-tests, continue to be taught as a matter of course in day-to-day lessons. 

Year 6 

• At the start of Michaelmas, if parents have not yet attended our introduction to entrance to senior schools at 13+, they are encouraged to attend. Parents are welcome to come more than once! This includes a briefing on the process from the Deputy Head Academic, as well as a chance to meet representatives from a variety of senior schools. 

• Some schools require boys to take entrance assessments (often referred to as pre-tests). These vary between schools but generally involve assessments in English, Maths and Reasoning (VR and/or NVR). The best way to find out what the papers involve is to look at the admissions pages on the school websites. Once you have registered your son, schools will keep in touch with information about these assessments. 

• A handful of our senior schools – St Edward’s, Eton, Harrow, Marlborough, Radley – use the online ISEB common pre-test (usually in Year 6) as part of their selection process. You will need to register with ISEB yourself as the senior schools no longer do this. Online papers in English, Maths, VR and NVR will, for the majority of applicants, are sat at NCS in early November of Year 6. 

• MCS pre-tests for 13+ entry are taken in January of Year 6. 

• Thinking and reasoning skills continue to be developed in English and Maths lessons and during lunchtime activities in Michaelmas and Trinity. 

• Boys have practice interviews with the Headmaster or another senior member of staff to help prepare them for on-site interviews at their prospective senior schools. 

Year 7 

• Do try to attend the welcome evening in September for an introduction to the Pre-Senior Baccalaureate (PSB) and scholarship routes into senior schools. 

• Some schools carry out their entrance assessments in Year 7 (for example Abingdon assessments are taken in October of Year 7; some senior schools will allow ISEB pre-tests to be taken in Year 7). 

• Thinking and reasoning skills continue to be developed in English and Maths lessons and during lunchtime activities in Michaelmas. A variety of resources are used, for example CGP books. 

• If they have not already done so, boys have practice interviews with the Headmaster or another senior member of staff to help prepare them for on-site interviews at their prospective senior schools. Sometimes boys will have a Year 7 interview with the Headmaster, even if they have already had one in Year 6, to enable them to practise further for their senior school interviews.  
   

Year 8 

• Do try to attend the welcome evening in September for an introduction to the Pre-Senior Baccalaureate (PSB) and scholarship routes into senior schools. 

• Most boys will have completed their entrance assessments by now but support is always offered to those who have yet to finalise a future school. 

• If boys show especially good academic achievement, they are encouraged to sit academic scholarships to senior schools; there is a scholarship class in Year 8 designed to facilitate the individual teaching needed. In addition, boys may sit Art, Drama, Music, Sport or All-Rounder Scholarships if appropriate and staff ensure that boys receive extra support and time to build up portfolios and notebooks or receive additional coaching. 

• Boys who are taking academic scholarships take exams set by their senior schools. These are usually in February or March for local schools, but may be in April or May for some of the boarding schools. 

• For most schools, the boys will sit internally set PSB exams at the end of Year 8. This leads to the boys’ completed Record of Achievement which is sent off to their senior schools in June, just after the boys’ exams. These are not ‘entrance exams’ like pre-tests in earlier years, but provide an opportunity for us, and the boys’ senior schools, to take a snapshot of their progress and attainment at the end of Year 8.  

• A small number of senior schools, chiefly some boarding schools, while recognising the value of the PSB, for parity with other prep schools wish to maintain their own Year 8 assessment (e.g. Winchester, Eton). We prepare the boys for these assessments on an ad hoc basis.