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AN INTRODUCTION TO HE FOR NEW VI FORM TUTORS
Sixth Form Tutoring and Higher Education Tutoring skills are essential at every level of the School’s pastoral system and central to these skills will be your relationship with your tutee and your capacity to engage with him or her in a meaningful and continuous dialogue. What is different about the application of these skills at Sixth Form level is the fact that you are dealing with a young adult who has CHOSEN to be with us for the final two years of school education. The greatest difference between tutoring in the VI Form and in any other part of the school is the issue of preparation for University or Higher Education. This booklet is not intended to be a pastoral manual, but to help you understand the specific pastoral concerns which impinge upon the process of preparation for Higher Education Applications.
Your Role In H.E
Your tutee will rely upon you and possibly upon his/her older peers for immediate knowledge or experience of the HE system. Sometimes you will find that parents, too, need to turn to you for clarification. The better you know the system the more effective will be your tutoring, but familiarity and confidence can only come with experience: please don’t be afraid to ask. Seeing a tutee successfully make the step from school to university can be a deeply rewarding experience. Each group base is provided with a current issue of Brian Heap’s Degree Course Offers, and this text is a perfect starting point for understanding the system. In the first instance, joining - in the LVI experience so that you can appreciate their perspective is as easier a method of absorbing information as any. Although the LVI HE Preparation programme is delivered via Foundation Studies, the primary process of consultation needs to take place in the group base and can begin in the Autumn term with informal discussions and trying to encourage the LVI to take note of the application process as it unfolds for their group-base colleagues in the UVI. The school website [University and Careers section] hosts useful links and also has copies of many of the power-point presentations that form the basis of our HE preparation. Sections of Student Resources are accessible to you and might form the basis of initial discussions.
A UCAS training session takes place in June of the LVI and you are very welcome to join that training session if you are available to do so. Cover will be made available for current staff.
Welcome aboard and good luck
Ruth Greenwood [RMG] Director of Higher Education
HE Calendar/Timetable LVI - UVI [Parents’ Evenings and Reporting Schedules are dates organised by the Deputy Head and by the Examinations Office and will be provided separately.] September of LVI Autumn Term October half term of LVI
Autumn Term Spring Term of LVI UCAS CARD February February Late Spring Term May-July
Post AS
June LVI July LVI August LVI Leavers September UVI Beginning of Term – Half Term Speech Day Half term October UVI Christmas Spring Term UVI March May UVI
RMG will explain the AS system and outline the key dates to the LVI whilst introducing them to the need for Work Experience. New Tutors may wish to attend this session. LVI have the pattern of the VI Form programme explained, including review points and HE progress Academic Review [ Report] Teachers will be asked to give an initial assessment of the academic progress of your tutees using a 1 -5 scale according to how well he/she has made the transition to A level. It is reasonable to expect that any teacher giving a very low rating would have already made contact with you to air any concerns. Oxbridge and competitive universities Students are encouraged to begin to extend themselves beyond the syllabus LVI HE programme kicks in. Students will be given an introduction to UCAS and HE research options. With you, they should explore possible HE courses using your Group’s copy of HEAP or using websites. Please feel free to bring them into the Guidance Centre at any time. All LVI will have a tutor-led IT session in which they research university courses [UCAS Course Search] or use psychometric testing [The Stamford Test] to explore likely HE options. They can register for a UCAS card at his stage. LVI Parents are invited to an HE talk A level INDICATOR grades are explained to students & then published These are for INTERNAL guidance only. RTC will ask for likely choices of UVI subjects. Students do not need more than 3 A levels for any university course save for Mathematics at the highest level. [Further Maths] Many students change their minds after results. Students will be encouraged to visit at least two University Open Day events. Sixth Form Tutors can use these days as an opportunity to visit specific university departments and build-up their contacts with admissions staff UCAS training takes place. These are compulsory sessions. Students register and learn to use APPLY. Draft personal statements are begun at this stage. Copies of HEAP are issued to each Tutor. References for potential medics and Oxbridge students need to be completed by students’ teachers within ISAMS notes A series of seminars is provided on the ‘extra’ qualifications required by competitive universities: BMAT, LNAT HAT etc Applications for Organ and choral scholarships at Oxford and/ or Cambridge need to be submitted to RMG BEFORE the end of the academic year. Post AS clinic Advice is available after AS results are published.
Assembly @ beginning of term Assembly
Tutors need to add a note re: last year’s leavers’ destinations and maintain e-mail contact with PQA students regarding their applications during the coming term PREDICTED GRADES are required from HoDs. These are not negotiable until half term, when there will be evidence to support any change. Please see HM’s policy [on staff section of web site] for further clarification. HE References need to be constructed from ISAMS notes. The previous tutor of your group should have left a draft for you. Further help is provided in this booklet. Liaise with Director of HE. There is some urgency for potential Medics, Vets, Dentists and Oxbridge applicants. Please check personal statements and approve applications. Pass signed Cover Sheets* and/or grey files to the Director of HE once you are happy with the application. Deadline for all other internal applications. OEs may still be in the system but should keep you informed of their plans. External Providers offer practice HE interviews. HE3 forms are our way of finding out what happened at interview. Please encourage students to see RMG to consult previous interview experiences and to add their own experiences to the data bank. Closure of UCAS season Results for January re-sits. Re-calculation of required UMS
PQA
Unsuccessful candidates become eligible for a further choice. UVI on sporadic examination leave. All UVI student require a testimonial to be drafted and filed for future reference within ISAMS Leavers’ “ booklet” sent via parent portal. Includes instructions for PQA and A2 results Results, Post A Level clinic and Clearing
UCAS Extra All References onto ISAMS PQA Guidance team
ISAMS
Assembly or lunch time seminar advertised Group Periods supporting the LVI Foundation Studies Programme IT sessions within FS
Evening ISAMS Assembly for LVI A2 Options
Open Days
APPLY Training
Lunchtimes. Academic Tutor & Director of HE Director of Music Summer Results HoDs available
Predictions HoD & HoS ISAMS UCAS References Medics/Vets/ Oxbridge Our UCAS deadline Internal deadlines Interviews
End of APPLY Re-sits
July UVI August UVI September Final destinations should be entered on ISAMS and old UVI files removed & given to KJ as Files & ISAMS ‘post’ UVI new LVI files are received. Please sift out unnecessary material as directed by PDJ. *Examples in this booklet and on the web site: http://www.kes.hants.sch.uk/university-and-careers/staff-only
The UCAS process You will be issued with a user name and PIN at the beginning of the academic year which will give you access to the APPLY system. It is probably a good idea to try this out as early as possible as the Autumn term becomes progressively more frantic. When you access APPLY you will be able to see a list of your tutees who have registered to use the system. Some will gradually be deleted as they decide to take the PQA route. Always remember that in September there will be two cycles of APPLY running simultaneously. It is easy to try to log-in to the earlier cycle!
You will be able to keep track of your tutees’ applications and therefore will be able to chivvy them along if they are getting close to deadlines. Those students who have already left but are making a PQA application will already have a reference provided by their previous tutor. If you have any difficulties with these applications consult the previous tutor if she/ he is still available or consult the Director of Higher Education [RMG] Please remember that our deadlines are much earlier than the published UCAS ones. If you have anyone applying for Oxbridge, Medicine, Veterinary Sciences or Dentistry [UVI or PQA], you will need to have everything in place by our Speech Day. This is often the penultimate Friday of September. All UVI applicants are expected to have submitted their applications to you by half term in October. PQA applicants are given a little longer and are required to have submitted their applications by the penultimate week of the Autumn term. We close down the UCAS system at Christmas so that we can turn our attention to the LVI. As a tutor, it is your responsibility to discuss a student’s application and help advise regarding suitability of choices [students need to have a sensible ‘insurance’ place within their list of universities]. In addition, you will be asked to check the student’s personal statement for accuracy. You do not need to have any input into the content of the personal statement as it is supposed to be entirely personal to the individual student. You may find this part of the process is the most exhausting as students are often frightened about pressing ‘send’ and committing themselves. You have the option to return the application to the student at any point if you are unhappy with some aspect of the content, but our experience tells us that you need to let the student know that you have done this. You will need to check their qualifications are entered correctly by cross-referencing to their profile on ISAMS. If there are discrepancies they will need to be followed-up. Mrs Owen, in the examinations office, is always willing to help with this.
Checking qualifications against the UCAS application This is time-consuming but very necessary. You will need to go to the student profile within ISAMS and select the examinations menu on the RH side of the screen. Remember that you need to select ‘results’ and the appropriate year.
Students do not need to enter their individual AS and A2 modules. Those who have particularly impressive UMS should have their achievement commented upon within the reference and the statistics cited. All AS grades cashed –in at the end of the LVI must appear as qualifications, even if the grade is likely to be improved upon in subsequent re-sits. Any examinations that have yet to be taken will be entered as pending, and re-takes of individual units to be re-taken can be entered in this way. Students who re-take units in AS subjects not continued to A2 level [not a practice we recommend] will need to apply to re-aggregate their units. Send such students to the Examinations Office, if in doubt. When you are satisfied that all qualifications are correctly entered, you need to tick the box on the UCAS form before adding your REFERENCE and passing it up the line for approval. Please remember to sign and pass the appropriate yellow Cover Sheet to RMG’s pigeon-hole to indicate that you have completed your part in the HE process. Electronic ‘tick’ needed. Press ‘go’ after you have done this.
How To Write A Reference for Higher Education The most startling difference in being a Sixth Form tutor rather than a tutor elsewhere in the school is the responsibility for writing a formal, academic reference for each of your tutees.
The information provided in this document, along with the exemplar material, is intended to help you feel confident about this particular requirement. An enormous amount of information and guidance is available to you via the school website in the academic menu.
Basically, you will collate information about your tutee’s academic skills, leadership qualities and personal development [via ISAMS Pupil Profile notes] into a piece of continuous prose which is forwarded to the Director of HE for approval and then to the Headmaster over whose signature it is forwarded to UCAS. Your PQA students’ applications go to the Director of HE [Oxbridge ones to the Assistant Director] and then to the Deputy Head, Academic. The process of transformation from discrete subject comments to academic over-view is not an easy one, but you need to make the reference your own and to reflect your own style and insights into the personal merits of your tutee.
It is advisable to draft your reference as a word document before attempting to paste it into the UCAS APPLY system. It is your responsibility to check your reference and the student’s application and then to forward the completed cover sheet [example provided] to the Director or Assistant Director of Higher Education via the pigeon-hole system. This physical ‘reminder’ is the catalyst for the rest of the process and the cover sheet is essential, tangible proof that we’ve kept our part of the bargain.
Please remember to DATE and SIGN the cover sheet. [An example of which can be found in this booklet and copies of which will be given to you in the initial Tutors’ meeting] Further copies of the cover sheet can be downloaded from the school web site.
Included in this document is a selection of past references. Please do not show these to students as, although surnames have been removed and some forenames changed, it is possible that identification could still occur.
If you have ANY problems or worries, PLEASE ask for help. Anyone in the Guidance Centre will be very happy to clarify any aspect of the process.
The Process Give yourself plenty of time to collate information about your Tutee from a variety of sources. Your predecessor will have been asked to begin this process at the end of the LVI year. However, it is worth remembering that students may have had a change of staff since the LVI. It is particularly worth asking students about any work experience they may have had over the summer. [Please remember to keep your ISAMS notes up to date – they can also be copied and used in a reference if an appropriate style is achieved] Remember that Oxbridge, Medical, Veterinary and Dentistry applicants will need to submit their UCAS forms much earlier and you will need to be ready to process them early in September. Speech Day is the internal deadline that we use & students will need to be reminded that even when they think they’ve finished, it will probably be at least another 10 working days before their form leaves the school. ISAMS notes are the basis for individual teachers to feed-back their impressions of a student to you. Each academic subject teacher should provide you with appropriate reflections.
Teacher references are separate from the final Tutor reference which is a synthesis of all information gathered
You will need to contact subject teachers [You need only contact academic staff so a blanket e-mail is less popular with your colleagues than individual ones in which you can give some indication of a student’s likely course of study]. Please set a clear deadline for the completion of the references, depending upon the preparedness of your tutee’s application. Once you have the raw information, you will need to gather it into a coherent form aimed at supporting the application. Academic staff will have been asked to comment on your tutee’s intelligence, motivation, written skills, diligence, capacity to synthesise information, aptitude for the subject and independence of mind. You will also be able to bring your knowledge of him/her to bear upon more personal skills such as humour, interaction with peers and staff, or leadership potential. Please try to combine the information into a cogent overview of the student rather than writing separate paragraphs on each academic subject studied. We need to provide a snapshot of the student’s academic potential rather than his or her progress Should the material from teachers be inadequate or inappropriate for your task, please consult with the Director of HE. The outcome of the UCAS process is often the goal towards which our students have been working throughout their time with us. Whilst you are discussing your Tutee’s personal Statement, it is probably sensible to talk through how the complete application will read –depending upon the individual circumstances, it may be far more effective that YOU should be the one to comment on the student’s aptitude rather than allowing him/her to offer pompous or evaluative comments on his/her own ability. Ideally the reference and Personal Statement should complement each other and emerge from a positive, collaborative process. Since the Data Protection Act and the Freedom of Information Act make it impossible to keep references confidential, we have suggested that you might wish to allow the student to view, on screen, the draft reference. Parents or guardians should NOT be given access to this document – it is a matter between you and the individual applicant. Please see me if you feel you need any further guidance or clarification or if you have any awkward requests. We do not advise you to meet with parents regarding HE matters without first checking with the Director of HE.
Personal Statements
A specific booklet dealing with personal statements can be provided separately – please ask RMG if you exhaust the resources on the web site - and all these examples can be shown to students, although they should not be copied. [see below] Once again, information is available on the academic section of the school web site under Student Resources. During the post AS period in the summer term we provide UCAS training for our students including presentations on the writing of personal statements. Links can be found to those presentations using the web site. We hope that, as a new tutor, you will have been able to attend at least one of these sessions. However, for those new to the School, this is not always possible and we encourage you to have a look at the Higher Education section of the School website so that you can see some of the presentations that have been provided to our students. If you have any doubts, please ask RMG for clarification. Included in this document you will find a couple of hard-copy versions of successful personal statements, but as a tutor, you will also be able to access exemplar material which you can use with your tutees during the first half of term. Please do not reproduce these as we only have permission to use them as classroom teaching aids – they are not for public dissemination and furthermore, we wish to encourage our students to be independent in their creation of their personal statement.
Further Help & Resources
Please, do, make use of the school’s web-site and the information under the ‘Academic’ drop-down menu. The University and Careers section contains many of the presentations given to students and parents over the course of the HE programme. Various links to external sources of advice can also be found here.
On the next few pages you will find copies of some of the standard forms we use in the HE process and a selection of references. All forms are available to download from the web site.
Please remember that you can always call on me for help, support or explanation. Good luck! Ruth Greenwood MA Director, Higher Education
APPLY FLOW CHART We are ready to run UCAS APPLY from the first day of the autumn term. Some students have already made major inroads on their electronic forms. The following points may be helpful, but see final paragraph for further details of staff involvement. Spare copies of ‘A Guide to HE Preparation For VI Form Tutors’ are available from RMG and also appear in the staff section of the web site under ‘university’. Prepares a reference using material from teacher references in ISAMS Pupil Profile Notes and inserts it in Referee Section of APPLY within the Administrator’s Suite
Tutor:-
Student should complete the UCAS APPLY form online. The buzzword has been communicated to them in their June training sessions. PQA students have this information via Parent Portal
Student & Tutor:-
Work together to create best possible application Tutor helps student to perfect his/her personal statement Tutor indicates his/her approval of the application Tutor & Student discuss the content of the academic reference. This can be seen ON SCREEN only by the student but no copy should be provided. Parents do not have right of access. Student signs the terms & conditions and pays UCAS Once the application is checked, instruct student to ‘send’ the form to ‘Referee’ in APPLY.
NB: Application may be ‘returned’ to Student several times – email contact might be necessary for OEs using the PQA system.
Tutor MUST ‘tick’ that qualifications have been checked NB: Fee code is 02 LEA Once the application is checked, tutor instructs student to send the form to ‘Referee’ in APPLY. Once all checks are made, Tutor marks application as approved. Oxbridge and non-UCAS applications should be passed to NDC with a completed and signed cover sheet1 All other UCAS applications should go to RMG .
Tutor:-
The loud yellow Cover Sheet is a necessary physical prompt and a reliable record of the internal progress of the application. Only when the cover sheet is passed to RMG or NDC can the next stage in processing begin. AJT will oversee current students. RTC will deal with OEs AJT or RTC:-
KJ:-
Tutor
1
Makes final check of reference in APPLY Sends UCAS Form to Cheltenham Returns Grey file and Cover sheet to KJ Prints copy of Pupil’s Application and puts in File for scanning, later Replaces the ISAMS note with the ‘final’ version of the reference sent to UCAS by HM Completes ISAMS HE database [ UCAS manager] Requests from tutors any update details to HE DATABASE as replies arrive. Provides an update on student’s progress through the system via e-mail to KJ Ensures that practice interviews are booked if necessary and post interview reports are completed and provided to RMG
Cover sheets were provided at initial VI form tutor’s meeting. RMG has a further supply and they can be downloaded from the web site.
Please leave for university choices
UCAS APPLY COVER SHEET
STUDENT:
GROUP:
TUTOR:
Instructions: Please place this in RMG’s or NDC’s pigeon-hole when the student’s application has been approved. This will be the catalyst for the next stage of the process. Initial/sign and date when passed to RMG [Only AFTER stages 1-4 are complete]
Tutor: Checks: 1. 2.
3.
You are happy that the completed personal statement contains no errors and feel it is the best the student can achieve Common student errors eg. LEA Section Correct: [ 02] Examination details checked on APPLY [electronic ‘tick’
needed then ‘approve’ the application] 4.
Teacher references complete on the apply system**
Please note the earlier deadline College choice should appear on this sheet and in APPLY
Oxbridge Please pass to NDC
Initial and date when passed to HM/RTC
Careers/Guidance:
Initial and date when sent to UCAS and passed to Careers/Guidance Secretary
Referee: (HM) O.E.s: (RTC)
Tick and date when complete
Careers/Guidance: Checks: 1. 2. 3.
Paper Copy in file ready to be scanned to ISAMS Current ISAMS reference replaced by UCAS reference in pupil profile Update UCAS data base
An Example of reference for a very able candidate for Physics XXX is an exceptional student of considerable integrity and personal charm who has maintained a consistently high level of achievement throughout his career. In earlier years he received numerous prizes and commendations; he entered the Sixth Form with outstanding grades at GCSE and was awarded a major academic scholarship to study Mathematics, Further Mathematics, Physics and History. He achieved 90%, 98% 95% and 96% respectively in these subjects in the AS examinations and is confidently expected to gain four A* grades at Advanced Level. XXX is an outstanding historian; meticulous in preparation and incisive in execution. After a distinguished performance in the Vellacott History Essay Prize competition he was invited to Peterhouse to discuss the possibility of reading History at Cambridge. However, XXX brings the same determination, insight, flair and imagination to all that he does and his work in Mathematics and Physics has revealed his true enthusiasms. As a mathematician, he is regarded as a scholar of the highest academic potential who is completely dedicated to study. He thrives on hard work and reads widely and avidly to acquire a comprehensive understanding of the subject material. At the same time, he retains a modesty about his ability, is most respectful to his mentors and patient with his peers. To these qualities he adds the attributes of trustworthiness, loyalty, politeness, and a wry sense of humour. He can be self deprecating, but his confidence is strong though never vaunted. XXX has a sharp, inquiring mind which he employs to good effect in penetrating to the root of most problems. This is a feature of his work in Physics, where he is renowned for his ability to reduce complex problems to the essential requirements for a solution. His enhanced sense of problem solving is by no means restricted to his written work. He is a skilful experimental physicist who designs elegant experiments to investigate effects. He interprets results in a healthily sceptical manner, and ceaselessly pursues improvements in technique and method. He enjoys discussions about Physics and always asks for clarification if he feels something is unclear. If something sounds a little woolly he will soon pounce. Although not outwardly confident, the seminar he gave after reading Smolin’s Three Roads to Gravity, revealed his willingness to challenge accepted theories and explore beyond the syllabus. Similarly, he presented a paper at the school’s Physics Society in which he provided an erudite but accessible digest of the issues raised by Green’s text: The Elegant Universe. He talks quietly and it is possible that on first acquaintance he may appear slightly reticent. However, we feel confident that you will be able to put him at ease and discover that he is an outstanding prospect. XXX has contributed enormously to the life of the School. He enjoys most sports and has represented the School at football and cross country running. He is a very talented athlete and a fierce competitor. In addition, his contributions to School Chess have been immense, and the personal qualities mentioned above are evident in him here: his gracious demeanour, in victory or defeat, is exceptional. His other responsibilities have included managing the new Scientist subscription scheme, organising a programme of visiting speakers for the Lunar Society, and planning and supervising Sixth Form examination duties. In electing to read Physics at university he has chosen a subject for which he has remarkable aptitude and interest. His essays are models of clarity, containing incisive analysis with pertinent factual material; his facility for mathematical argument is superb and he possesses the inner eye of a potentially great scientist. We commend him to you most warmly.
Examples of References that are altered This is the original draft of the reference
This is how it ended-up when the Headmaster sent it
Theodore was a very well mannered young man who mixed well with both his peer group and the staff who taught him. He was always very well turned out, had a good attendance record and was punctual. He was a very determined individual who worked well under pressure. He was always certain that he would succeed in the end even if it meant revisiting material and concepts studied at an earlier date. Theodore was a fairly quiet but positive student in class, being more than capable of contributing valuable input into discussion sessions.
During his school career, we always found Theodore to be a very well-mannered young man, who mixed well with both his peer group and the staff who taught him. He was always very well turned out, had a good attendance record and was reliably punctual. He was a very determined individual who worked well under pressure and went on to achieve examination success.
His academic record to date is very positive with eleven G.C.S.E. passes; three at grade 'A*', four at grade 'A', and four at grade 'B'. In his A' Levels he secured a grade 'A' in Design and Technology, and grade 'B' in both his Business Studies and in Geography. In all his subjects there was clear evidence that he had the potential to succeed but that he had to work hard to reach his true potential. For his own part Theodore was a very determined individual who knew exactly what he wanted to achieve and was prepared to put the necessary time in to his studies to achieve it. During his time in the Sixth Form Theodore was always interested in following a course focussing on Business and Management. He was actively involved in the Young Enterprise Scheme. His work during his Upper Sixth studies showed an increasing maturity and commonsense approach to all that was required of him. He became increasingly hard-working, and this increased level of motivation clearly paid off in the final examinations. To say that Theodore is a dedicated hockey player is to really underplay the significance of the game to his lifestyle. Theodore has been involved in all levels of the game and has worked on all aspects of the sport from playing and captaining school teams to coaching youngsters coming through the ranks at both School and club level. The sport is almost a religion to him. The details of his participation are clearly discussed within his personal statement. He quite obviously has a great deal of potential as he steps up towards university level and he has used his GAP year sensibly to gain experience of the business world. As such we would have no hesitation in recommending him whole-heartedly as someone who will no doubt get a great deal out of studying Business and Management to degree level.
He has left us with a very creditable academic record of 11 good GCSE passes, seven of which were at A or A*. [Qualifications can be grouped together. Punctuation can cause problems with the formatting in APPLY so it has been removed] In his Advanced Level examinations he secured a grade A in Design and Technology, and B grades in both Business Studies and in Geography. In all his subjects there was always clear evidence that he had the potential to succeed and he demonstrated the determination and tenacity needed to fulfil this. Theodore was never afraid of hard work nor of asking for help if he needed it and, as such, was a useful addition to the class. He had the good sense to ask questions that others would not and, if necessary, to make a fool of himself with unimpaired sang-froid. His excellent good humour endeared him to all and his Business Studies teacher commented that he was ‘a positive influence within the teaching set’ [ A specific quotation can help here] During his time in the Sixth Form Theodore was always interested in following a course focussing on Business and Management and he became actively involved in the Young Enterprise Scheme as part of his vocational interest. His work during his Upper Sixth studies showed an increasing maturity and a common-sense approach to all that was required of him. He became increasingly diligent in his studies and capable of working competently and confidently within his disciplines. By combining Design with Business Studies, Theodore was better able than many to see through a concept from raw materials to the market place and he brought a very sound level of pragmatic understanding to the development of manufactured items. His study of Geography included looking at industrial and economic development and the practical application of statistical models. In all subjects, Theodore was a fairly quiet but positive student in class, being more than capable of contributing valuable input into discussion sessions. To say that Theodore is a dedicated hockey player is to significantly underplay the importance of the game to his lifestyle. Theodore has been involved in all levels of the game and has worked on all aspects of the sport from playing and captaining school teams to coaching youngsters coming through the ranks at both School and club level. The sport is almost a religion to him. The details of his participation are clearly discussed within his personal statement, but we can confirm that he is a generous sportsman and a gifted motivator on the field. Theodore quite obviously has a great deal of potential as he steps up towards university level and he has used his GAP year sensibly to gain experience of the business world. As such we would have no hesitation in recommending him wholeheartedly as someone who will no doubt get a great deal out of studying Business and Management to degree level.
Example of a Non- Specific Reference For a “Modest Achiever with Lots to offer� xxxxx is an immensely committed, vibrant character who pitches herself with unbridled enthusiasm into any undertaking. As her personal statement testifies, that verve has been principally expressed through projects involving working for other people and broadening her experience of other cultures. Whether in the academic environment or very far from it, she always seems to approach every situation with two, possibly subconscious, objectives: how can I help somebody here? What can I learn from this myself? Combine these attributes with her unflagging cheerfulness and winsomeness, and you gain the picture of someone who has much to contribute to a university course, and to a university's life. xxxxx has worked hard throughout her Sixth Form courses. In French she made a rather slow but nevertheless determined start to the course, and gradually gained both confidence and a firmer command of the language. Through diligent application and immersion in francophone culture and material, she has developed more style in her use of the language. Her approach was unfailingly conscientious, and she was willing to seek guidance and clarification in confronting such difficulties as were encountered in the acquisition of the subjunctive. Through graft rather than gift, she was thus able to raise a somewhat modest C grade from the first attempt at AS Level into a far more convincing A grade, augmented by grade B at A2 Level. Her study of History has helped xxxxxx to enhance her essay-writing skills, and it taught her the value of reading widely to support an opinion. She developed a liking for researching a topic where she had little previous knowledge, purely for the sake of the challenge and to broaden her knowledge-base. She has also studied Music Technology with great success, developing her creative side as well as mastering a range of technological and musical terminology, and putting many hours into the completion of some high quality coursework. In Mathematics, up to AS Level, she also worked with great enthusiasm and showed many instances of sharp insight. Her confidence was variable in this subject, although her ability was such as would have warranted her continuation to A2 Level, had she so wished. In extra-curricular contexts, xxx’s main fields of endeavour have been sporting, musical and charitable. She has represented her House at all the main sports: hockey, netball, and athletics, but also at badminton in which she was a member of the Hampshire Development Squad. She has had instrumental music lessons in both flute and drums, and has organised charitable events and worked with disabled children from quite an early age herself. The Romanian project in which she has participated has involved enormous commitment to fund-raising events as well as the work in Romania itself, applying herself to the tasks of helping orphans and disabled children with characteristic warmth and verve. With such an array of personal qualities, xxxx was a natural choice as Head of House for her final year at school. This, too, involved a heavy burden of time spent organising activities and supporting and encouraging a wide age range of pupils and teams. Her commitment was unwavering, and the ultimate attainment of the House championship could be attributed in part to her leadership. Although she is such a busy and active individual, she does not allow this to interfere with the progress of her studies, and can therefore be emphatically commended to the universities to which she has applied as a very worthy potential undergraduate.
A example of a “standby reference” for an UVI potential Law student taking a Gap Year. XXX has always had the ambition to study Law and not only has had work experience to this end, but has direct contact with the profession from his father, a solicitor. On his own initiative he set-up a workshadowing placement throughout his long summer vacation, regularly commuting in order to fulfil his commitments and earning the respect of Shadwell Partners in Camberley who wrote to the school to commend XXXX’s tenacity and application. His other chief interest has been German, in which he has developed considerable expertise during his Sixth Form career. During his Gap Year he has secured, with great initiative and his own efforts, a placement at BMW at Munich, where he can combine an interest in motor engineering with the opportunity to improve the fluency of his German. He has studied A Levels in German, Chemistry and Mathematics and is predicted to gain A*,A, B in these. He has made the best use of his intelligence by hard work and determination, responding positively to advice and being keen to improve. He attended virtually all voluntary tutorials in German and prepared thoroughly for them, in addition to his normal workload. He learns assiduously and his work is always thoroughly prepared. He enjoys German literature and has developed interesting ideas of his own, if occasionally trying to express them in an over complicated style in his analyses. His written assignments were always completed in good time and often demonstrated his willingness to go beyond the syllabus as, for example, when he decided to read not only the Tristan narratives, but Mark Chinca’s controversial interpretation of ‘The Arthur of the Germans’. In Chemistry, XXXX has worked meticulously to develop a fine understanding, discussing work carefully with his teachers and proving himself highly motivated. He can be flexible in his thinking and is very perceptive, overcoming any initial lack of confidence. In Mathematics too, XXX’s positive approach and attention to detail have ensured an excellent grasp of all areas of the course and justified assurance in all he has done. His performance in the tricky C3 examination yielded 96/100 and although his performance in the mechanics papers has not quite matched that, all his solutions are concise, well argued and logically explained. Outside the classroom XXX has been active in helping to put together a German magazine and in so doing has fine-tuned his computing and desk-top publishing skills. He has also been an active member of the sailing club a regular attender of the Law Society and XXX has always been a fairly reserved student at School, but his confidence has grown quietly throughout his time in the Sixth Form, greatly helped by his frequent visits to Germany to stay with an exchange partner. His maturity and good sense have always been key qualities and make him an excellent prospect for Higher Education. He has earned the liking and respect of all his teachers and mixes easily within a group of good friends. He is a young man of considerable promise, who will make full use of any opportunities offered to him in Higher Education and whom we recommend to you very highly for his absolute integrity, industry and initiative.