"The Careers Department has been invaluable in helping me choose my university place and think about future careers."
Upper Sixth Leaver
LEH Careers Programme
Upper Fifth and Sixth Form 2024-2025
Contents
2 Careers Team
4 Careers Help at LEH
6 Upper Fifth Careers Programme
7 The LEH Work Experience Scheme
9 Looking Ahead to Sixth Form
12 Specialist Advice Available:
12 Support for Applications to Oxford and Cambridge
13 Applications for Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary Science
15 University Additional Admissions Tests
16 Applications to American Universities
17 Application to Universities beyond the UK and USA
The LEH Careers Team
2024 – 2025
o Mrs Nicky Hampstead Head of Higher Education and Careers
o Mrs Rhiannon Brown (Classics) Head of Year (Upper School)
o Ms Flora Ellison (Classics) Head of Upper School
o Miss Ellie Felicien Careers Co-ordinator
o Mrs Charlotte Livingstone Sixth Form Tutor, Oxbridge Co-ordinator
o Mrs Debbie Howorth (Head of Art)
o Mrs Catherine Nicholls (Biology) Head of Year (Middle School), Deputy Head of Higher Education and Careers
o Mr Liam O’Rourke (Head of Geography) Sixth Form Tutor, University Additional Tests Co-ordinator
o Miss Catherine Packer (Chemistry) Head of Year (Sixth Form), Oxbridge Mentor, Medical University Applications Co-ordinator
o Miss Barnett (English) Co-ordinator for Applications to US Universities
o Mr Mark Tompsett (Modern Languages) Head of Sixth Form
o Miss Alice Lindsay (Head of History of Art) Head of Year (Middle School)
o Dr Rebecca Taylor Director of Outreach and Cocurricular
o Miss Antonia Perlowska-Goose (Geography)
Specific areas of expertise covered are as follows:
Mr O’Rourke University Additional Tests
Mrs Livingstone Oxbridge Applications
Mrs Hampstead University Admissions and A level Choices
Miss Packer Applications for Medicine, Dentistry or Veterinary Science
Miss Barnett Admissions to US Universities
Students can speak to a member of the Careers Team at any stage of their school career. They can either make an appointment or attend one of the ‘Drop In’ sessions which take place at 1.05pm each day in the Careers Room. Students should check the Drop-In timetable in the Careers Room to see when staff are available.
All the Careers staff can help with general enquiries from students.
Careers Help at LEH. The Careers Programme runs sequentially throughout the students’ time at LEH. Key points of the programme include:
Thirds
A Life Advice session giving an introduction to the Careers Room and its resources. A group quiz about employers and different opportunities in the workplace. Consideration of the skills and qualities needed for different careers.
Lower Fourth
A year group talk from an inspirational speaker about a specific area of Careers.
Upper Fourth
• Life Advice sessions, including talks from Heads of Departments about GCSEs
• GCSE Information Evening
• Questionnaire and follow up interview organised and conducted by Careers staff to help with GCSE choices
• GCSE subject choices
• Forum with the Upper Fifth regarding subject choices.
Lower Fifth
• Information Evening for parents
• Life Advice sessions:
1. Using the resources in the Careers Room and online platforms to research potential careers
2. An introduction to our Meaningful Connections programme
• Meaningful Connections Day
• A year group talk from an inspirational speaker about a specific area of Careers
• Computerised questionnaire (Morrisby) followed up with an individual interview to discuss careers and A level choices in the Autumn Term of Upper Fifth.
Upper Fifth
• Annual Careers Evening
• Forum with Upper Sixth Form regarding subject choices
• Life Advice sessions – writing a CV; preparing for work experience
• Work experience/work shadowing in the summer holidays
• Opportunities to attend extra-curricular talks
• Annual Higher Education Fair.
Lower Sixth
• Update Morrisby profiles followed by an individual interview to discuss degree subjects/university choices
• Weekly Careers lessons
• Advice on Careers and Higher Education (involves subject staff and Sixth Form Tutors)
• Annual Careers Evening
• University Information Evening (for parents and students)
• Opportunities to attend extra-curricular talks
• Higher Education Fair
• Support for applications to internships and other work-related programmes
• LEH Elevate - alumnae mentoring programme
• Medsoc begins at start of the Spring Term
• Oxbridge Programme, including mock interviews.
Upper Sixth
• Medsoc continues until the end of the Autumn Term
• Weekly timetabled lessons
• Annual Careers Evening
• Careers and Higher Education – the UCAS application procedure
• Dedicated UCAS Day
• Oxbridge Programme, including mock interviews
• Opportunities to attend extra-curricular talks
• Advice when A level results arrive
• Support for applications to internships and other work-related programmes
• LEH Elevate - alumnae mentoring programme
• Introduction to Holles Connect, LEH’s fantastic network of alumnae.
Post-A level
• A designated Post-A level applications morning in early September
• In addition, advice is available whenever necessary.
Upper Fifth Careers Programme. During the Upper Fifth, the Careers Programme focuses on A level choices and encouraging students to use work experience to start to identify careers that they find interesting.
A
level Choices and the Morrisby Programme
LEH uses the Morrisby Programme of careers guidance. Pupils complete an online questionnaire which is analysed and used to prepare an individual report for each participating student, focusing on their abilities and interests. Each pupil has a one-to-one interview with a member of the Careers Team to review their results and is given guidance on A level choices and implications for possible career paths. Students can invite their parents to view their profile.
Morrisby is offered to students on an opt-out basis, those who do not participate are still given an individual interview by a member of the Careers Department. Additional interviews are arranged throughout the rest of the year on request.
The Careers Evening – Spring Term 2025
The Careers Department organises an annual Careers Evening, to which all Upper Fifth, Sixth Formers and parents are invited. The 2025 event will be held on Tuesday 25th February.
It is arranged on a ‘market-place’ basis, so that pupils can talk informally to representatives of careers which particularly interest them. In 2024 over 65 careers were represented, ranging from Accountancy to Law, Technology, Healthcare, the Civil Service, the Arts, Media and Publishing. Some businesses that attended were locally-based, such as the National Physical Laboratory; whilst others, including PwC, Accenture and Google were international.
LEH is very grateful to alumnae, parents and organisations who give up their time in this way. In particular, our former pupils always seem to enjoy returning to LEH to meet our current students.
Life Advice
A level Choices: In addition to the Morrisby Programme, the Deputy Head of Careers talks to the Upper Fifth pupils about A level choices and implications for degree subject choices.
Heads of Departments talk to pupils about their subjects at A level during Life Advice sessions, and discuss links with other subjects and progression to higher education and career areas.
Members of the Sixth Form share their A level subject experiences with the Upper Fifth in a forum.
Parents’ Evening
The Upper Fifth Parents’ Evening will be held in February 2025, and A level choices are submitted shortly afterwards.
The LEH Work Experience Scheme
Introduction
Work experience has become increasingly important: students can refer to it in their UCAS application, as part of their Personal Statement, while for some future careers, for example Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary Science, work experience is an essential part of the application process. In addition, students gain confidence and learn some of the practicalities of going to work, albeit for a brief period. LEH strongly recommends that, if possible, all students undertake work experience.
Purpose
To acquire an understanding of the work environment, both physical and social, to experience working discipline, and to apply experiences to their own situation and aspirations. It also makes an important contribution to the UCAS application.
Organisation
In most cases pupils and their parents are able to organise their own placements, but where this is difficult, the Careers Department can offer suggestions. Students carry out work experience during the summer holidays. There is no designated time limit: some go for two or three days; others may work for one week or two. Many students undertake more than one placement in order to sample a variety of fields.
In some instances, pupils choose to start their work experience in the Sixth Form or find placements which build on the experience gained in the Upper Fifth. This may take place during any of the school holidays. In addition, students may apply to highly regarded Work Experience Programmes, such as those offered by Morgan Stanley with their Step In Step Up Programme. Sixth Form students are also encouraged to apply for summer internships.
How Parents Can Help
• Assisting your daughter with finding a work experience placement, often through family contacts, but also through encouraging her to identify and contact likely companies.
• Helping to prepare your daughter for her placement; this can range from talking through what might be expected to checking travel plans.
• After the placement, encouraging your daughter to reflect on her work experience, considering what she has learnt about herself and the wider world.
• Considering, with your daughter, what her next step might be in finding out more about a particular career, or gaining further ‘hands on’ experience during the Sixth Form years.
Looking Ahead to the Sixth Form. The Careers Department works very closely with subject staff and Sixth Form Tutors in providing careers education, information and guidance. During the Lower Sixth, the emphasis is on preparation for higher education, whilst in the Upper Sixth, the focus shifts to the university application process.
Morrisby
In the Lower Sixth the students update their Morrisby profile to explore their degree options. The results are reviewed in a one-to-one interview with a member of the Careers Team, which allows the student to consider the available options and form an action plan.
The timetabled Weekly Careers Programme is wide-ranging, covering the following topics in the course of the two years of Sixth Form.
Higher Education information and advice, including how to choose your course, Open Days; the UCAS application process, including using the UCAS website and preparing the personal statement, interviews (including mock interviews), using the internet for research into courses and universities.
Career planning – speakers from a variety of backgrounds visit to talk about their career paths. Students are given advice on CV and cover letter preparation; networking and the importance of work experience; graduate trainee schemes; and applying for internships, including paid gap year programmes offered by UK companies, such as IBM.
Range of outside speakers – in addition to speakers on career opportunities, admissions tutors from UK universities visit the school; other speakers cover topics of general interest and importance, voluntary work, and healthcare.
Student Survival Package – including information on student loans, accommodation, personal safety, resilience development and first days at university.
LEH Alumnae talk to students about their experiences at university and during gap years.
Parents and Lower Sixth students are invited to attend the Sixth Form UCAS Evening in February. The evening aims to disseminate information on applying to university and includes a presentation by a university consultant. The Head Mistress and members of the Careers Team are also available to answer questions.
The Higher Education Fair – March 2025
The Higher Education Fair is an annual event where around 30 popular universities visit LEH to talk informally to students in the Lower Sixth from LEH, Hampton School and other local schools. In 2024 the universities represented included Bath, Cardiff, Durham, Exeter, Imperial College London, Warwick and Queens University, Belfast together with many other institutions.
Work Experience/Internship Opportunities
A number of companies invite LEH Sixth Form students to apply to summer internship programmes. In the past year students have been to BP, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and IBM, and have found the experience invaluable. Entry to these prestigious programmes can be competitive; however, the Careers Team is able to support pupils with the application process.
Careers Extra-curricular Talks
These are delivered by external experts. Topics have included: Applying to study Medicine delivered by Brighton and Sussex Medical School; The Scottish Universities application process; Women in Engineering; Careers in the Finance industry and an evening talk from ex-pupils speaking about their careers after having studied Fine Art and Architecture at University.
Alumnae Mentoring
The Careers Department offers a Mentoring Scheme whereby, whenever possible, students interested in a particular career are matched with ex-pupils working in that field. Sixth Form students should contact the Careers Department for further information on this scheme.
The Careers Room is open to all students, and also to those students who decide to make a Post-A level application to university.
Upper Sixth
The Careers Programme for the Upper Sixth aims to help students make the best choice of course for higher education or training, or advise on the most appropriate alternative course of action, and to liaise with form tutors throughout the application process.
All LEH students receive advice on the UCAS application and writing their personal statement and then, later in the year, advice about university offers and how to proceed once they have their A level results.
The Careers Programme also aims to prepare students for independent living, either at university, during a gap year, or in employment.
UCAS Day – September 2024 will be set aside to allow all Upper Sixth pupils to finalise their UCAS applications. Sixth Form Tutors, Careers Staff, the Oxbridge, Medical and Extra Tests Co-ordinators will all be available to assist.
If students decide to apply to university after A level results are received, this is known as a Post-A level application and the school will offer support and advice.
Specialist Advice Available
Support for Applications to Oxford and Cambridge LEH offers a thorough programme of support for all prospective Oxbridge applicants. The programme concentrates on the three main aspects of the preparation process and runs them parallel alongside each other throughout the year.
Firstly, the Enrichment Programme is open to all students and we encourage them to participate. The enrichment lessons shared with Hampton School, which form part of the Sixth Form curriculum, include lessons covering Critical Thinking Skills. We also have a large number of lectures by visiting speakers throughout the year (both at LEH and Hampton School) and there is an opportunity for students to develop wider subject knowledge through weekly ‘Subject Plus’ enrichment sessions in which they will extend their knowledge and develop their skills beyond A level.
Secondly, there is support and advice given with application procedures and interview preparation. Once they have confirmed their intention to apply, they are assigned a mentor from the Oxbridge Team who will guide and advise them throughout the application process. All Oxbridge candidates are provided with a minimum of two mock interviews from which they receive valuable feedback.
The third aspect of the process is to provide help and support to students in preparing for various admissions tests which usually take place in October or when candidates are invited up for interview in December. These are now an important part of the application process for most subjects, for Oxford, Cambridge and some other university courses.
Of course, students are also encouraged to be independent and self-motivated. For example, in previous years pupils have organised appropriate work experience and attended relevant evening lectures, have taken part in Master classes or Summer Schools in their proposed degree subject in the holidays.
Oxford, Cambridge and London University virtual visits with LEH alumnae take place in the Spring Term and are open to all Lower Sixth students. We also hold our Oxbridge Evening at school at the beginning of the Summer Term where we invite an Admissions Tutor from Oxford or Cambridge as well as LEH alumnae who have studied at Oxford or Cambridge and current Upper Sixth students who have received offers, to speak to students and their parents who are interested in making an application.
Applications for Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary Science. These are among the most rewarding of professions and due to the responsible and challenging nature of the work, entry to these courses is highly competitive. Excellent GCSE results are required as a sound basis for an application. The school offers support to suitable candidates from the Upper Fifth onwards.
Miss Packer is the member of the Careers Team who advises applicants for Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary Science.
Upper Fifth
The aim at this stage is to identify those students who might be interested in a career in this field, and to help them become informed about the professions by undertaking work experience and voluntary work.
Once interested students have identified themselves to Miss Packer, they are:
• Given a brief outline of the application process
• Invited to Medsoc talks when pertinent to their year group
• Advised on how to find work experience and voluntary work
• Invited to the Careers’ Evening to meet a variety of relevant professionals.
Lower Sixth
In the Lower Sixth the focus moves to confirming the students’ vocation through additional work experience. Preparation for the UCAT and UCAS application is delivered through the weekly Medsoc meetings which begin in January. Competition for places is fierce and students need to think strategically when considering university choices.
In addition, Lower Sixth students are:
• Provided with information on a range of conferences, courses and open days
• Given further details and dates about sitting the UCAT
• Invited to attend training for the UCAT
• Invited to attend a variety of talks from professionals and recent alumni
• Encouraged to continue with a variety of work experience and voluntary work
• Given tailored advice about strategic medical school choices
• Encouraged to share information gathered from attending open days at Medsoc
• Invited to the Careers’ Evening to meet a variety of relevant professionals.
Upper Sixth
All LEH students receive support with writing their personal statement and managing their university choices, interviews and ultimately offers.
Students are also:
• Invited to mock interviews led by Medsoc’s professional mentors
• Invited to sign-up for Multiple Mini-Interview training (MMI)
• Supported throughout the application process
• Given advice on results day where necessary
• Post-A level application support offerred.
University Additional Admissions Tests. Candidates for Oxford, Cambridge and Imperial College London, and for Medicine and Law courses are routinely pre-tested by their prospective universities, but increasingly other faculties pre-assess their candidates.
During the UCAS application process in the Lower and Upper Sixth, information is provided about the tests and relevant deadlines. For those pupils planning to apply for a subject requiring a University Admissions Test, a series of subject-specific support and preparation sessions are provided by school.
Many of these specialist tests are taken outside of school at Pearson Vue Test Centres.
Admissions Tests
Details of admissions tests can be found at the following websites:
Oxford
www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/applying-to-oxford/guide/admissions-tests
Cambridge
www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/applying/admission-assessments
Imperial College London
www.imperial.ac.uk/study/apply/undergraduate/process/admissions-tests/
The Law National Aptitude Test (LNAT)
www.lnat.ac.uk/
University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT)
www.ucat.ac.uk/
Other Admissions Tests
Please check individual university course guide pages.
Please check university course guides carefully to see if your course requires an admissions test. Please be aware that the required tests change from year to year and so university webpages are often the most up-to-date resources.
Applications to American Universities. To reflect the steady increase in the number of LEH students in recent years with interest in applying to universities in the United States, Miss Barnett is the designated member of staff responsible for overseeing arrangements relating to such applications. Pupils who are interested in applying to American universities are encouraged to discuss their plans with Miss Barnett as early as possible.
Pupils are responsible for completing their section of the application and arranging the completion of the appropriate SAT or ACT tests in good time, ideally during their Lower Sixth year. The school holds contact details of several external consultants whom some LEH pupils have used in the past to guide them through the complexities of the system. This is particularly beneficial when pupils elect to apply to universities which either do not use the Common Application route, or which require additional information and documentation.
The school will then oversee the arrangements for the completion of all other documentation. This will encompass, as a minimum, for those pursuing the Common Application route the ‘School Profile’, the ‘Transcript’ for each candidate, the ‘Secondary School Report’, the two ‘Teacher Evaluation’ forms, the ‘International Supplement’, the ‘Mid-Year Report’ and the ‘Final Report’. Candidates have the freedom to choose which Sixth Form teachers they would like to write their recommendations for the ‘Teacher Evaluation’. The ‘Secondary School Report’ is written by their Tutor. The school will ensure that these are produced in good time.
Additionally, the School organises a biennial ‘American Universities Information Evening’, which has been hosted in the past by one of our external consultants and which provides a thorough introduction to those who might be interested in pursuing an application. We also invite an expert in this field to attend the annual Higher Education Fair where pupils have the opportunity to discuss the application process on a one-to-one basis. Our links with former LEH pupils who are currently studying in America are also strong, and we invite many to return to the school to talk to interested pupils. We are also happy to put pupils in email contact with former pupils now studying in the US.
It is common for pupils to pursue a UCAS application alongside an application to one or more American universities, and many feel that this broadens the range of higher education options open to them. The nature of the courses and the cost of studying in the US mean that this option is not for everyone, making it all the more important to be fully informed of all facets of the relevant courses, universities and application systems. There is also a section within the Careers Room which provides information on the application process and prospectuses. This is an excellent first step for pupils who are potentially interested.
Application to Universities beyond the UK and USA
Since the introduction of top-up fees, many UK students have become interested in undergraduate and postgraduate courses available throughout Europe, which are often much more reasonably priced or even free of tuition costs. This has coincided with the introduction of BA and MA courses in English in many European universities. At LEH we provide information and support for students who are interested in following this route.
