A WELCOME FROM MR. WAYNE RIDGWAY - HEAD OF SENIORS

Curriculum Choices

You will need to choose which courses you wish to study. You can use the information in this booklet; consider your interests and strengths; take into account the advice of your teachers; and discuss your preferred courses with your family and friends. It is important that, as an individual, you also carry out independent research into Sixth Form, university and employment, because choices you make this year may determine what you can and cannot study later in life.

The choices you make impact on your future, so it is vital that you play the leading role in planning them; but of course, the BSB will provide you with a great deal of advice and assistance. Please note that many of our courses require you to reach a certain level of knowledge and skills in Year 9: this is to ensure that you do not enrol on a GCSE course and later regret it, as you find it difficult to cope with its demands. Ultimately, the final decision as to whether you can enrol on a course rests with the school, and our judgment is based on vast experience with hundreds of students. Please also note that there is a minimum number of students required for a course to run. All students take English, Mathematics, and Triple Award Science

(what we call ‘Core’ subjects). On top of this, students can choose three optional subjects from a wide range of options. The options at the BSB allow students to follow paths that interest them, while still maintaining a decent breadth of subjects. Most BSB students will obtain eight or nine GCSEs or equivalent, though seven or more is normally what universities will look for (of course, A-levels or equivalent are more important for determining acceptance onto a university degree course).