School Placements
Our Schools Placement program pairs you with a highly experienced Academic Mentor to help guide you through the process. All of our Schools Placement Mentors are fully qualified teachers with years of experience teaching at prestigious UK boarding and day schools. They have been selected based on their excellent professional reputations and experience.
1 Point Entry Service
-
This includes the application fee, an academic assessment and schools list, a suggested tuition programme (if necessary), arrangement of school visits, assistance with application forms and translating relevant documents for 1 school application.
N.B. We take full responsibility for application matters and communicating with the school on behalf of the student/parent.
2 Point Entry Service
-
This includes the application fee, an academic assessment and schools list, a suggested tuition programme (if necessary), arrangement of school visits, assistance with application forms and translating relevant documents for 2 school applications.
N.B. We take full responsibility for application matters and communicating with the school on behalf of the student/parent.
3 Point Entry Service
-
This includes the application fee, an academic assessment and schools list, a suggested tuition programme (if necessary), arrangement of school visits, assistance with application forms and translating relevant documents for 3 school applications.
N.B. We take full responsibility for application matters and communicating with the school on behalf of the student/parent.
How it works
01 — CONSULTATION AND ASSESSMENT
First we sit down and discuss with your concerns and expectations. We will discuss the age, interests and academic strengths and weaknesses of your child and ascertain what type of school you might be looking to apply to. Please don’t worry if you have no idea about the UK private school system, this is the perfect opportunity to ask any questions you may have and to find out a bit more about the application process itself.
We then carry out a full assessment on the academic strengths and weaknesses of your child. This may include reading through past school reports and examinations, talking to teachers and sitting our assessment papers. This will highlight the areas which require specific attention going forward and help us to generate a mentoring plan.
As well as assessing academic aptitude, we will also ask you to fill in a form outlining the extra-curricular interests and passions of your child. This is absolutely crucial when it comes to recommending schools. Each school is highly individualistic, with a different feel and set of values. This is where our extensive knowledge of the private school system will really benefit you. Whether your child has a passion for DT, sport, music, drama, art or even something more obscure we will recommend schools in which we know that they will flourish and develop into well-rounded individuals.
02 — RECOMENDATIONS
Next, we draw up a personalised academic plan for your child. This will start by outlining the goals and targets agreed upon by you, your child and Whetstone Tutors. It will then go on to highlight the areas of strengths and weaknesses that we have identified in our assessment, and recommend necessary action. Recommendations will come in the following forms (depending on what it is you are looking for us to help you with):
1) School suggestions - We will suggest schools that we think are best suited to the academic abilities and interests of your child.
2) Application support - Each school has a different approach to interviewing and testing. You may choose to apply to several different UK private schools, all of which have different application and examination dates. We offer to take care of all the paperwork and logistics surrounding the school application process.
3) Tutoring - Sometimes, if we feel it is necessary, we will recommend tutoring in specific areas of weakness. It is often the case that overseas students applying to UK or US schools require additional English tuition in order to pass the requisite English assessment exams. We will provide you with profile information of two or three recommended expert tutors for each subject area that we feel needs additional assistance from which to choose.
As a policy, we do not recommend tuition where it is not needed. We are aware of the growing trend towards mass extra-tuition and see private tuition as a tool to fill in curriculum gaps, rather than as an expected norm.
03 — ONGOING SUPPORT
What makes our placement service stand out is the ongoing support we offer. Once part of the Academic Mentoring program, our mentors and tutors are always available via email or phone to chat through any concerns or questions you may be having. We ensure that all mentors and tutors involved in the education of your child have a weekly meeting so that dialogue over the progress of your child in every area that requires support is being constantly assessed. Moreover, we provide monthly reports outlining in detail the progress that has been made, and any suggested alterations to the academic plan.
