Boarding Schools – A Guide To Choosing One In The UK

UK boarding schools have a longstanding reputation for excellence. Those who attend them benefit from a first class educational experience and are given a real head start in life. Pupils can attend from the ages of five to eighteen, and can be from any country in the world. Some of the UK’s best boarding schools attract pupils from all corners of the globe; their parents being attracted by the high academic success rates amongst other things.

The cost of boarding schools in the UK are typically regarded as being expensive compared to boarding schools in many other countries, but looking at the cost alone is misleading. UK boarding schools are subject to minimum standards laid out by the education department of the UK government, and are regularly inspected to ensure that those standards are being met. Minimum standards are above and beyond those enforced in most other countries, so you can rest assured that your child will receive a high standard of education at any boarding school in the UK.

Boarding schools in the UK educate pupils by following the standard British curriculum, which is revered and copied by lots of other countries. At eighteen, pupils gain their A-levels, which are, according to Cambridge University and Oxford University, the highest form of pre-university qualifications available. Having achieved good A-levels grades, pupils can attend the best universities anywhere in the world. The grades that pupils at boarding schools achieve for their A-levels are well above the national average, with lots of pupils achieving straight As.

The best time for a child to start at a boarding school is at the age of eleven, which is when pupils in the UK start their secondary education. Older pupils are accepted, but the process of transition is easier when they are starting from the same point as their peers. Competition for places can be intense, particularly at the highest achieving boarding schools, and academic entrance tests must normally be passed. The academic year begins in September in the UK, so taking the entrance test at least six months in advance of that month is advisable.

Before deciding which of the many UK boarding schools to send your child to, you should do the following…

- Browse the website of each school and request a detailed prospectus from the ones you like best.

- Take a tour of a few of the schools that are of most interest.

- Talk with your child about what aspects of a school are most important to them.

- Get a detailed list of what is included in a schools fees and what is not.

- Find out if any grants or scholarships are available.

Read On : Boarding Schools Kent

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