Winchester College review by University of Oxford student.
The class size at Winchester College was definitely small enough (as low as 7) to allow everyone's voice to be heard, all the teachers were very accessible and more than willing to help out in the evenings after hours even in their own houses, and the work load was enough to fill your time but definitely bearable especially if you were organised. Overall excellent in these departments. School was very enthusiastic about not 'spoon feeding' and teaching a broad range of skills and did this to a certain extent by giving us a taste of lots of areas (art, music, extra english etc) but not in that much detail. Also, like any good private school I have realised since arriving at uni that there was far more spoon feeding than I had originally realised in order to make sure we were 100% prepared for A-levels, however I think this is always the case due to the formulaic nature of the exams.
Lots of talk about university however I was not taken seriously as an Oxbridge candidate.... Get the real inside story on college counseling at Winchester College as experienced by former pupil and University of Oxford student — Login or Sign Up to access full review
Sample insights on college counseling
They have contacts at most of the major universities and feel perfectly comfortable picking up the phone and advocating for a student to get accepted somewhere they feel is a good fit for that student. However, these counselors are certainly not magic bullets. They cannot guarantee that a student will get into an Ivy League university...
For those wishing to move on to Oxford or Cambridge, the provision is second-to-none. In the months running up to application and interview, every subject faculty offers classes (often run by former Oxbridge tutors) exploring further areas of their subject as well as offering advice on personal statements, interview technique and more...
Test was 'Winchester entrance', a slightly more advanced form of Common Entrance. The scholarship exam.... Get in-depth insights and personal advice on admissions to Winchester College by former pupil and University of Oxford student — Login or Sign Up to access full review
Sample insights on admissions
For the interview, dress conservatively. Try to be very clean and put together. Also, I was a tour guide for two years and at the end of every tour, we were asked to evaluate the candidate so if you think the tour is not apart of the process, you are very wrong. Ask questions and be interested. Also, tip for the parents: the kids speak on the tour. Do not ask their questions for them...
Most younger siblings have an easy time in the admissions process. I can only think of one case of a younger sibling not being admitted. About half of the students who entered with me had come from public schools. The remainder came from private K-6 schools, or had transferred from other New York private schools The Elizabeth Morrow School and St. Bernard were two of the larger feeder schools...
Housing was good although we only had a single room in our top year (something I liked but not everyone did.) The food was taken in house and was therefore variable but our house was good (B house). The neighbourhood was fairly safe being in the middle of a fairly quiet city, although there was some trouble from local state schools. The social events were good fun although more could have been done with local girls schools at a school level (as opposed to pupils always making their own arrangements). For instance our end of school balls clashed with one.... Get the real inside story on quality of school life and extracurricular offerings at Winchester College as experienced by former pupil and University of Oxford student — Login or Sign Up to access full review