Kingsdale Admissions

[prm]

Just trying to get my head around how Kingsdale applications work...

How do the different bands work?

And how do you apply for scholarships? The child does an assesment in advance and then are they allocated a place based on the result of the assessment? Or does a positive assessment put them in a separate ?pool? to the main intake - but they still have to ?play the lottery??

It?s all so complicated, a little guidance from someone who has been through it would be much appreciated!

[flocker spotter]

The banding tests put children into innate ability bands. If awarded a music or sports scholarship, these become separate banding pots - no guaranteed place. Maths and art scholarships are applied for once a place has been offered.

The admissions people take equal numbers from each banding pot plus a random selection from the scholarship pots (if oversubscribed). If the people selected on first random offers do not accept the places, then further random selections will be made from the relevant pots.

It is a complicated system, but being a lottery it is the fairest there is. Just apply, sit the banding and scholarship tests and wait and see. If your child is not awarded a place initially, stay on the waiting list as it does move quite fast, right up through the holidays and even into the first term. Good luck!

[redjam]

Yes, it's important to realise that winning a scholarship doesn't necessarily get your child a place. But it does increase the child's chances of getting in. I've always understood it as meaning you essentially get two chances to be drawn out of the bag (and you have better odds in the scholarship bag). Not sure if bags actually come into it but you know what I mean... It's quite an opaque system but basically I'd say it's worth going for any scholarship if possible, as it will help your chances if you get one.

[prm]

Thanks for your replies. So the advantage comes from the pool of scolarship applicants being smaller but being given the same amount places as the other bands? And do you also apply separately based on the standard banding results - so have two seoarate goes at the ?lottery??

[redjam]

I'm really not sure about the numbers of places that go to scholarship students (I seem to remember it says it somewhere on their admissions page but it's not v. clear) but yes, my understanding is that effectively you have two separate goes at the lottery: one through the standard banding and one through the scholarship pool.

This is based on my memory from two years ago so someone might have better insight than me. Have you looked at their website? There is admissions information on there if you can be bothered to wade through it.

[prm]

Thanks Redjam. We are still a few years away from having to apply but I have tried to read the Admissions policy before and it is so confusing! So a bit of insight from the forum is really helpful. Thanks again & good luck to everyone who is hoping to get into their chosen secondaries.

[redjam]

Yes, they don't make it easy to understand. Kingsdale moves in mysterious ways...

[kristymac1]

my understanding is that only 15% of places can be filled by scholarship places (so 60 places for a 400 yr 7 intake), and that the kids obtaining scholarship places are 'ranked' rather than lottery. So, the best performing 60 kids will be offered scholarships first and your position on the scholarship waiting list is your 'ranking'.

The other list is total lottery. The system is less than transparent, but we can only hope it is conducted fairly, in which case the lottery side of it seems to be a fair way forward.

[Renata Hamvas]

Hi all,

my understanding broadly fits with what Kristymac says. They is a limit of 15% selection for music and sport selection combined, these each will have separate lists ie 15% are selected in total for admissions purposes. All children do the banding test and then siblings and other priority groups come first. There are three separate random allocation waiting lists, one for each band. This means if you are number one on the waiting list for band 3, but someone from band 2 turns down the place, your waiting list won't move, only the band 2 waiting list. There ends up being a much greater proportion of children with scholarships than 15% as many children who have achieved scholarship level get a place via the random allocation system rather than via the scholarship ranking.

Renata