1. Visit us
We hold a number of Open Mornings and Group Visits throughout the year which give you a general introduction to the school, a tour of the campus and, if appropriate, a visit to a boarding house. Following a visit you can arrange an individual meeting with a member of the Admissions team. We also offer virtual events if you are unable to visit the school in person.
Book a visit
2. Application
The first step in applying is to complete the application form and to pay the registration fee (£350 for a boarding application or £200 for a day application). You can register at any time up to 1 August, just over a year before you wish your child to join us.
Day application Boarding Application
Before you make an application, please use the age checker to make sure your child’s age is correct for the year of entry. Students should normally be aged 16 on 1 September of the year of entry. However, we consider applications from students over the age of 15.5 and under the age of 17.7 on 1 September in the year of entry. Please contact Admissions before completing the registration form if your child’s date of birth falls outside the expected dates.
Use our age checker
Late applicants should first email the Sixth Form Registrar before filling out the application form.
Parents’ contact details
The information given on the online application form is used for all our communications. It is therefore important that you notify us of any change of email, postal address or circumstances during the application process. This is particularly important if you have applied some years in advance of entry.
3. Confirmation
By the end of August the year before your child intends to start at Sevenoaks, we ask you to confirm that you wish to go ahead with the Sixth Form entry process. We also ask you to provide us with more detailed information relevant to your child’s application and their most recent school report. Your child also needs to submit a 600-word personal statement about their academic and co-curricular interests. At this time, we provide further information regarding the entrance tests.
Day students who wish to apply for financial assistance should read the policy and apply at this stage. Candidates may also express interest in applying for a scholarship.
References from current school
Before we can offer a place, we must receive a confidential reference from the candidate’s current school. We will give you notice of our intention to request the reference, which is usually after the candidate has taken the exams.
4. Scholarships
Sevenoaks offers scholarships to honour and celebrate exceptional talent in academia, music, sports, drama and art. Academic scholarships are examined after the assessment day by invitation, based on performance in the entrance exams and school references.
Scholarship Information
5. Assessment Days
All candidates living in or attending school in the UK are expected to come to the assessment day at Sevenoaks School in October, and all other candidates are encouraged to do so. However, we do usually hold assessment days in other locations such as Hong Kong and Mumbai, depending on demand. There is a charge for attending an international assessment day to help cover our expenses. Alternative arrangements can be made with the Sixth Form Registrar for candidates to test in their home country if necessary, usually at a British Council office.
All candidates sit four papers: English, Maths, Thinking Skills (humanities and linguistics) and Science. Applicants wishing to take Higher Level Maths sit an additional maths extension paper. Candidates also participate in a 40-minute group discussion led by our teachers. For those candidates not testing at the school, the group discussion is held online.
More details
6. Results
Offers of places are sent at the start of December.
Some candidates will be reserved. This means they have passed our tests and have demonstrated that they would be good Sevenoaks students, and we will be pleased to offer them a place if one becomes available later in the process. Parents are advised to keep in touch with the Assistant Director of Admissions in this situation. We consider our reserve candidates as a pool, not a list. When a place becomes available, we offer it to the most suitable reserved candidate.
7. Accepting your place
Congratulations! We’re looking forward to seeing you at Sevenoaks soon. There are a range of induction activities for new students and parents to help you prepare to join the school.
Acceptance of all places must be confirmed by the payment of a deposit (£2000 for day pupils; £5000 for boarding pupils) and the completion of a Form of Acceptance by the date specified in our offer letter. Any candidate who decides not to accept their place should inform us of their decision as soon as possible so the place can be released to a reserved candidate.
