ACADEMIC SCHOLARSHIPS
ACADEMIC SCHOLARSHIPS AT WOLDINGHAM Girls offered scholarships at Woldingham have already demonstrated their potential. By becoming an academic scholar at Woldingham, we’ll help you reach levels of achievement you didn’t know you were capable of, opening doors to outstanding universities and exceptional careers. Through inspirational learning from teachers passionate about their subjects, academic scholars at Woldingham follow a bespoke and personalised programme to make the most of your potential. We’ll help you learn to solve complex problems, develop your creativity and become a sophisticated thinker comfortable with philosophical debate and scientific enquiry. You’ll learn important research skills and critical thinking. Whether you know exactly what you want to do after school, or have no idea, our goal is to help you become the author of your own life story. Our aim is to help you to #WriteYourOwnStory.
WELLBEING FRONT AND CENTRE Woldingham is not, and never will be, an academic hothouse. Students at Woldingham thrive and achieve in a supportive and kind environment centred on your wellbeing. Our wonderful 700-acre site in the stunning Surrey Hills and excellent facilities provide a fantastic environment to support academic endeavour and achievement. Whether you are a scholar or not, being a teenager can be tough, so we balance academic stretch and challenge with becoming a rounded individual. We help students to work and learn smarter, not harder, and develop resilience and determination. Our academic scholars achieve outstanding results at both GCSE and A Level and, at the same time, become well-balanced, happy individuals. Academic scholars play in orchestras, compete in sport fixtures and perform on stage in our 600+ seat auditorium. They learn new skills through choosing one of our 80 clubs and societies, build friendships for life and develop values and career skills to be successful in life after school. Success comes from enjoyment and achievement both in and out of the classroom.
STRETCH AND CHALLENGE Our small classes allow teachers to know each student well, enabling academic scholars to be encouraged and stretched with differentiated activities. Core subjects, including maths and English, are streamed from the second term in Year 7. This means students are taught with girls of similar academic levels. Science is streamed from Year 9. Many of our academic scholars take advantage of the opportunity to learn Greek alongside Latin, GCSE further maths, or GCSE astronomy as an additional subject. For our bi-lingual students there are options for some students to take a GCSE in a modern foreign language earlier than Year 11. We also encourage academic scholars to take part in external competitions and challenges, such as science and maths Olympiads, where they compete with other high achieving young people from across the UK.
KRITIKOS SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMME Academic scholars in Years 7 to 11 join Woldingham’s unique Kritikos programme, in addition to following the normal academic timetable. The Kritikos programme comprises: • One-to-one meetings and coaching sessions between students and Kritikos teachers to discuss and develop their interests within, and beyond, the curriculum and support students with their wider reading and independent study • Encouragement and support to develop a ‘growth mindset’ and be proud of their academic achievement and potential • Debates and discussions on intellectually challenging subjects • Annual Philosothon with other schools developing philosophical enquiry and rigour • Staff and student led mini lectures • An end of year ‘Curiosity Project’, which is a significant piece of independent research • Year 8 academic scholars can complete an AQA Level 1 Project Qualification. Like a mini EPQ research project, students complete a logbook, presentation and essay. In the Sixth Form, students can choose to take a full EPQ (Extended Project Qualification), which is excellent preparation for university.
ACADEMIC SCHOLARS IN SIXTH FORM In the Sixth Form, scholars take more personal responsibility and have greater individual choice in how to develop their academic and intellectual abilities. Sixth Form scholars are encouraged to take part in essay competitions, maths challenges, science Olympiads and a wide range of prestigious awards in subjects from English to design technology. Woldingham’s Sixth Form students have a fantastic track record in excelling in these external competitions and awards and we celebrate their success. In the Sixth Form, scholars can choose to develop their academic research skills through taking an EPQ or choose one of the other additional curriculum courses, such as coaching or core maths. All students in Lower Sixth Form follow Woldingham’s bespoke Sophia programme taking a deep dive into culture, science, society, ecology, anthropology to develop critical thinking and sophisticated learning. Academic scholars find this particularly stimulating and rewarding. Typically, most Sixth Formers take three A Levels but we take a flexible approach with our most academically able students who want to study four subjects at A Level. The pinnacle achievement for our academic scholars is to be named Woldingham’s Academic Ribbon (prefect), providing student leadership across the school for this key area of school life. Many scholars join Woldingham’s Oxbridge programme to support their university applications to Oxford and Cambridge. There are also separate programmes, and individual mentoring, to help students applying to medicine, dental and veterinary science courses. Specialist support is also provided for students applying to overseas universities.
ACADEMIC PRIZES Each year we celebrate academic scholarship and achievement at our annual Speech Day. There are prizes for each academic subject for each year group as well as trophies and awards for the highest achievement. It’s one more way Woldingham celebrates academic excellence and improvement.
#WriteYourOwnStory as an academic scholar at Woldingham
Woldingham School, Marden Park, Woldingham, Surrey, CR3 7YA (for satellite navigation please use postcode CR3 7LR)
T: 01883 349431 E: registrar@woldinghamschool.co.uk
woldinghamschool.co.uk