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How do I prepare for the assessment and/or interview stage?
How do I prepare for the assessment and/or interview stage?
You've made it to the interview and assessment stage? Congrats, that's great news! Depending on the child's year entry to the school the assessment process may look a little different. Common assessments are the following:
UKiset
CAT4
ISEB Common Pre-Test
Often the school will also have individualized assessments for English, Math or anticipated GCSE or A-level subjects. Most schools allow overseas living students to take the assessments in the country where they are living, for example at the British council. If the school agrees, we are also happy to offer supervision at our office for students to take the assessments.
For students that are enrolled in our tutoring services and take lessons with us, we are able to provide a reference/recommendation letter for the application process.
13+ Information
13+ Information
For a 13+ entry usually prospective students take written and oral assessments in this stage of the application process. Common written assessments include one or more tests in core subjects, including English, Math, and Science. Once the written assessments are completed, prospective students are invited to an interview and discussion stage. The interview with a staff member from the school is partly to assess the level of English of the student. Some schools also include a discussion part to analyze the prospective student's interaction and behavior with other peers. The discussion assessment might also take place in person at the school rather than being online.
16+ Information
16+ Information
For a 16+ entry usually prospective students take written and oral assessments in this stage of the application process. Common written assessments include one or several tests for A-level subjects or IB subjects, for example English, Math, Science, Economics, etc., that the prospective student would like to take. Furthermore, it is highly common that international applicants must also complete a written English assessment, for example in the form of an essay.
Once the written assessments are completed, the prospective students are invited to an interview stage. The interview is an essential part of the application process and has several purposes. Firstly, the staff member of the school has a chance to evaluate the student's level of English and to see whether they would require additional support from the school's English as an Additional Language team. Secondly, the goal of the interview is for the school to get to know the prospective student on a deeper level beyond academics. This involves getting to know their personality and understanding their motivation for applying to the school which helps to assess the suitability level. Students are encouraged to share their interests, extracurricular activities, and academic abilities.
Interviews
Interviews
Most schools incorporate an interview stage in the application process to assess your child's level of English. The interviews are often led by a staff member of the English as an Additional Language (EAL) team. The outcome should usually not prevent your child from entering the school, they are simply checking how much support they should offer to your child once they have entered the school to be able to catch up on the level of English to follow all classes well.
Some assessment stages include a discussion round as well. This helps to assess your child's ability to interact with others and share their thoughts, ideas and opinion. We are able to help prepare your child for this stage of the assessment, so they are confident and comfortable in speaking in group settings in English.
How we can support you
How we can support you
We are able to help prepare your child for the assessment tests with additional tutoring lessons and sample practice tests. Your child is more than welcome to sit the assessments at our office, feeling more at ease and comfortable in a familiar environment compared to a council office.
Furthermore, we offer mock interviews to practice your child's interaction with a school representative. This can help to relieve nerves and give your child an understanding of what questions they can expect to be asked.
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