Preparing for Scholarship Exams

Scholarship exams set by many independent schools are a series of subject specific and general papers which require much greater depth of knowledge than the Common Entrance curriculum and its examinations. There is a Common Academic Scholarship Exam and also individual ones set by the schools themselves, such as Eton, Westminster and Radley.

In my experience preparing children for these exams, they are meant to be tough, meant to be challenging and are a real test of a child’s potential and character. If awarded the scholarship, the child may not only have a reduction in school fees, but perhaps more importantly, it is a serious and prestigious achievement that will be one for the annals.

There are broadly two types of candidate for scholarship: either the student has received their conditional offer following pre-tests or, if there has been no offer made, it’s scholarship or nothing. Knowledge of the Common Entrance syllabus should be a given. Scholarship pushes beyond this, closer to GCSE and sometimes borderline A-level quality of questioning. With these tests, however, the focus seems to be on how children think and work through problems, as well as how they can write, all in a relatively short space of time.

Therefore this can be quite a daunting prospect for a 12-year-old preparing for these exams and sitting them at 13. My role as a tutor is to guide them through the preparation process, to motivate, to mentor, to encourage, to teach independent study skills, and often to teach beyond the Common Entrance syllabus for Latin and classical Greek, as well as structuring and developing their written work.

Sometimes the teaching has to be done at an accelerated pace, but always consistent with the student’s pace and how much information they can absorb in the time. I cannot vouch for maths and science subjects for these exams, but the subjects which are writing-heavy do not require specific subject knowledge beyond Common Entrance, but rather ask general questions which require children to think laterally about subjects. Children must deploy analytical skills they have been taught at Common Entrance to essay-length, quality answers.

A big part of the preparation is getting children used to writing at length in a short space of time. First, planning is key. Getting a flexible structure in place for the children to go on autopilot in the exam saves time. It also makes them think more methodically than feeling a sense of fear when faced with a tough question, at a loss to come up with ideas.

Children aiming for the scholarship are expected to read widely; much more widely than a typical 12-year-old would do. As well as recommending more challenging books and reading material, both fiction and non-fiction, I would recommend a poetry anthology, an encyclopedia and dictionary. There are also good websites on developing and memorising vocabulary for different languages. At times, I would recommend TED-ED, TED Talks, The Week magazine, books like Matthew Syed’s You Are Awesome and Prisoners of Geography by Tim Marshall to improve the student’s motivation, knowledge of current affairs and world-awareness.

Families would tend to start contemplating and preparing for the scholarship exams up to a year or year and a half prior to the exams. However, real and substantive preparation begins the summer before Year 8 starts. Children will then have covered the bulk of the Common Entrance syllabus to be in a position to extend their knowledge and feel confident in tackling past paper questions.

If your child is ambitious and has a good attitude to work, is disciplined, diligent, determined, a resilient and positive person, up for a challenge, then the scholarship is definitely worth considering. Talk to your current school about whether your child is capable enough and whether there is a realistic prospect of success. Schools often put on extra classes for scholarship candidates.

Whatever the result of the scholarship exams themselves, your child will have gone on a journey of discovery and be in a good position to hit the ground running as they start senior school.

The following books, magazines, podcasts and videos will help prepare for scholarship exams:
 

  • The Undercover Economist by Tim Harford

  • Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores The Hidden Side of Everything by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

  • Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps that Explain Everything About the World by Tim Marshall

  • Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari

  • Fermat’s Last Theorem by Simon Singh

  • A History of the World in 100 Objects by Neil MacGregor

  • Alex’s Adventures in Numberland by Alex Bellos

  • The Little Book of Thunks: 260 Questions to Make Your Brain go Ouch! by Ian Gilbert

  • Do You Think You're Clever? The Oxford and Cambridge Questions by John Farndon

  • I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai

  • The Greatest by Matthew Syed

  • The New Silk Roads by Peter Frankopan

  • To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

  • Fifty Things You Need To Know About British History by Hugh Williams

 
The Week is a current affairs magazine that brings together the best articles from around the world, whilst The Day is a daily online newspaper for teenagers.
 
The Inquiry and 21st Century Mythologies are podcasts from the BBC. The first explores the trends, forces and ideas that shape the world and the second is an exploration of aspects of popular culture.
 
TED and TED-Ed deliver a huge range of talks designed to get everyone thinking.

Adam Muckle