ADMISSIONS POLICY

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The college aims to welcome students from all backgrounds and supports those with learning difficulties and disabilities to access the curriculum and operates an equal opportunities policy.

The Sixth Form College receives an increasingly large number of applications each year.To ensure that growth does not take place at the expense of quality, the Governors have adopted the following admissions policy.They wish to re-affirm the College’s Mission to serve the community of Winchester and the surrounding area, taking into account the range of courses and facilities available within the College. To this end, we cannot guarantee to interview applicants who live outside the local area.

Each course has its own specific entry criteria, as stated in the prospectus. Every year the College will assess its predicted number of applications against its required intake number of students, and applicants may be given a firm offer of a place, or may be placed on a reserve list. In some cases, we may feel there is no suitable course available for the applicant or the applicant will not benefit from our course and suggest applying elsewhere.

When deciding which form of offer to make an applicant, the College will take into consideration:

• Home address
  Those living closest to the Winchester area are likely to receive a firm offer.
• Previous school
  Those attending one of the College’s partner schools are likely to receive a firm offer.
• Family connections
  Those with siblings already at the College, or similar family connections, are likely to receive a firm offer
• Date of application
  Those applying after the closing date published in the College prospectus are unlikely to receive a firm offer.
• Other factors likely to raise doubt about a student's suitability for a place at this college.

Reserve list

Those students not falling within one of the categories listed above are more likely to be placed on the College’s reserve list. Available places will be offered to students on the reserve list at the Principal’s discretion. When exercising that discretion the following factors will be taken into account:

• Suitability for course.
• Other factors such as transport routes and ease of travel, date of application, school references and Records of Achievement, and any special needs.

All Applicants

• Must demonstrate a strong commitment to further study and the ethos of the college
• Satisfy requirements for admission to the proposed programme of study
• Agree to adhere to the Rules of the College as set out in the Student Handbook and to any agreements made between the college and individual students/and/or their parents or legal guardians that the college can reasonably require.

Students wishing to re-start or to re-enrol

Students may have specific conditions placed on their re-application which they must meet, for example, a certain level of attendance.They also need to demonstrate their suitability for further study at interview.

Older applicants

Applications to the Sixth Form from students who will be 18 years and older when they plan to start studying at Peter Symonds will not normally be considered.However, students will be advised to contact the Head of Admissions if they have very exceptional circumstances which they wish to be taken into consideration.In such cases, the Head of Admissions may accept a student over 18 years old, subject to interview.Provision for adults is made by the College at the Adult Continuing Education centre.

Applications to enter college to study A2 courses only

This is not recommended. We will consider any external applications on an individual basis and only accept students onto an A2 programme in exceptional circumstances. Entry would be dependent on there being sufficient room in classes and would be subject to satisfactory references, including comments on performance and attendance, from applicants’ previous school/college.

Boarding

Places in Boarding are strictly limited and will be allocated according to our assessment of the academic needs of each individual student.When considering applications the following issues will be taken into consideration:

• Students progressing to the college directly from year 11
• Students whose parents are resident overseas as a result of their employment, in particular those whose from families employed in the public and voluntary sector and those resident in the Falkland Islands and sponsored by the Falkland Islands Government
• Students with family connections with the college, as set out above
• Students who apply by the deadline for Boarding applications
• Students who are UK nationals

Hampshire Specialist Music Course

Similarly this course has a strictly limited number of places available, and has its own special entry criteria. Early applications are strongly advised.

Adult Students at ACE

Adult learners must sign the Learning Agreement as confirmation that they will adhere to the Rules of the College as set out in the Adult Learner’s Handbook and to any agreements made between the College and individual students that the College can reasonably require.

The College aims to provide all applicants with a programme of study that suits their individual needs. However, places may not be offered for the following reasons:

• The applicant is unable to demonstrate that they hold the minimum entry requirements
• The applicant is seeking to undertake a programme where there is no realistic chance of success
• The applicant has a criminal conviction which bars them from certain areas of work and therefore some courses will not be available.

If the College is unable to admit an applicant to the programme of their choice, we will try to offer a suitable alternative programme and/or appropriate advice and guidance.