Magdalen sixth form - interview and test

hi, I'm applying to magdalen college school for sixth form. is anyone else applying?

and if you already have, what was in the interview and in the test? I know that it will be verbal reasoning test but without multiple choice. so then is it similar to cat4 that measures your cognitive ability?? Also what advice would you give?

Which Magdalen college school? The state or private one

yeah I’m taking the MCS exam in oxford on saturday LOL do you have any advice? currently applying for maths, theology and an art scholarship on top of that. if ur able to lmk about aspects of those subjects, i’d appreciate it, thank you ^__^

Good luck- I had a maths interview there and (don’t be put off) but found it an… interesting environment. The questions would have been absolutely fine, just usual GCSE Maths questions which I would normally find simples, but the teacher who interviewed me (although seemed nice enough) was quite off-putting. I asked him if he wanted me to explain my thought process and he basically said he didn’t mind, so I went with explaining it. The thing is, as I was explaining it he was not acknowledging me or listening so it created a very awkward feeling which definitely put me off. If it weren’t for that (I think) I would’ve been fine, just look over your GCSE topics in the subjects u have interviews in. Also get a feel for the school- I decided that I didn’t want to go there after the interview day because the vibe wasn’t my cup of tea

oh my gosh I’m so sorry about that 😭 I get ur viewpoint because not being listened to is something I wouldn’t want in a teacher, so I understand. I’ll go with an open mind since everyone’s experience is different but thanks for letting me know! I’m at the admissions process, was the maths paper hard or? also the verbal reasoning

Yesss don’t be scared I’m sure it’ll be all good for you!! The actual questions were all good so don’t worry! I didn’t do the actual maths paper but the verbal reasoning was okay- just a bit tight for time so I didn’t finish. Good luck!! : )

hii!!! okay so I screwed up my maths paper 😭 (this was the first year that they did it so I’m hoping they’ll be a bit lenient) and it was so hard managing the time </3 I left a few boxes blank but it’s fine. I really enjoyed the theology paper and it was fun writing my answers :0. I also did verbal reasoning which I thought was fun as well, but I left some blanks to check my answers, so hopefully what I’ve done has demonstrated what I can do. I’m currently waiting for my art scholarship interview and I’m so nervous!!! but it’s okay, as long as I can show my passions let’s see if I get into the interviews!

Don’t worry!!! I’m sure you will have done better than you thought you did!! They will make the questions challenging to make themselves look like a very academic school so don’t be put off if you found it tricky- most likely a lot of people did. Well done for theology and verbal reasoning!! Good luck for your interview - I’m sure you will smash it!! How did you find the school- did you enjoy it there and did you make any friends with other people doing tests? (or was the whole thing online?)

thank you, that made me feel better 😭 a lot of people, as you said didn’t finish the paper and left some blanks so yeah, it’s reasonable as they gave us 45 minutes for 45 questions with increasing difficulty. we did it physically, so my interview went pretty well, i was relaxed and enjoyed it! the questions were very interesting. I found the school to be nice, but I feel like the hype train has gone down, and I feel uncertain whether or not I want to go. 🤔 the opportunities are great and overall the school was nice but I felt it was awkward at times, especially talking with the other sixth formers. I made a few friends here and there and generally, our bunch were pretty nice! one thing I was slightly put-off was during the interview, the examiner didn’t treat my sketchbooks with a lot of care which did made me feel a bit worried. other than that, he was very encouraging for me to explore my answers which I thought was good. hope you’re enjoying the fireworks tonight!

I completely completely get you!!!!!!! The main reason why I didn’t want to go in the end was because (like you) I found it so awkward to make convo with the other students there I was trying so hard but pretty much everyone was very quiet which is completely fine because I’m sure every one was nervous but I’m quite an out-going person and didn’t really feel like I could find my sort of crowd there !! Also it’s quite a long train journey from me andddd to be honest with super super high achieving schools, 9/10 it is because they just accept the best of the best students who will get A*s wherever they are so I couldn’t reallly get a good insight of whether the teachings there would be good or not if that makes sense. However don’t let me put you off I know some people who went there who really enjoy it and I do think they give good preparation for uni and everything. Also they have a very impressive list of clubs etc! Ahhh that must’ve been stressful- If I did an art subject I would cry if anyone came anywhere near my work that would’ve taken like HOURS. That’s good that u made some friends and found the teacher nice though!! How are you finding GCSEs in general?? - they really creep up on you after mocks!!! Thank youuu hope you are enjoying the fireworks as well and relaxing after the stress of exams ☺️☺️☺️☺️ x

omg stop because that was exact same situation that I went through. 😭 I usually consider myself more out-going when I’m meeting new people (usually I’m more introverted but that means I spent time by myself to recharge) SOOO it was so hard to carry the whole conversation by myself! a big demographic of my school applies for MCS, so it wasn’t hard finding my bunch but yeah, I understand what you mean when people prefer to be reclusive which is fine! I agree with what you’ve said about choosing students, but also they’re looking for “potential” which got me like hmm, that could be interesting. nevertheless, I’m pretty happy that I’ve tried. :0 GCSEs in general are quite daunting and I’ve done so many tests, it’s insane 😭 doesn’t help my school is academic as well HAHA but yeah, our mocks are during january, so I think it’s nice we have the whole christmas holiday. (I feel like I’ll regret saying that.) hope you don’t mind me asking, but what year are you in? or have you finished school haha

Good luck- I had a maths interview there and (don’t be put off) but found it an… interesting environment. The questions would have been absolutely fine, just usual GCSE Maths questions which I would normally find simples, but the teacher who interviewed me (although seemed nice enough) was quite off-putting. I asked him if he wanted me to explain my thought process and he basically said he didn’t mind, so I went with explaining it. The thing is, as I was explaining it he was not acknowledging me or listening so it created a very awkward feeling which definitely put me off. If it weren’t for that (I think) I would’ve been fine, just look over your GCSE topics in the subjects u have interviews in. Also get a feel for the school- I decided that I didn’t want to go there after the interview day because the vibe wasn’t my cup of tea

omg i went to the interview last year, it was so stressful and they weren't even difficult questions. the interviewer even asked if i believed if i was in the top middle or bottom of my maths class and i stayed so silent because i didn't know what else to say

Yesss I get u- when I had my interview day there I was struggling sm to keep the conversations going! It’s definitely a good thing to try out for- even if you decide you don’t want to go or get in, the general academic interview environment etc is such a good experience that lots won’t experience for the first time until big uni interviews, so that’s definitely an advantage if anything!! Don’t stress it Im sure you will have done amazingly, you definitely sound passionate about your subjects which is exactly what they will be looking for. Ahh yes my mock in year 11 were in january too which is definitely nice If u want any GCSE tips let me knowww (I got ten grade 9sss) and I’m in year 12 atm xxx

omg i went to the interview last year, it was so stressful and they weren't even difficult questions. the interviewer even asked if i believed if i was in the top middle or bottom of my maths class and i stayed so silent because i didn't know what else to say

man i get you cuz in my school, our sets don’t work like that 😭 it’s more about the learning pace rather than the skills so idk 🤷 did he move onto the next question?

yeah I’m taking the MCS exam in oxford on saturday LOL do you have any advice? currently applying for maths, theology and an art scholarship on top of that. if ur able to lmk about aspects of those subjects, i’d appreciate it, thank you ^__^

omg stop because that was exact same situation that I went through. 😭 I usually consider myself more out-going when I’m meeting new people (usually I’m more introverted but that means I spent time by myself to recharge) SOOO it was so hard to carry the whole conversation by myself! a big demographic of my school applies for MCS, so it wasn’t hard finding my bunch but yeah, I understand what you mean when people prefer to be reclusive which is fine! I agree with what you’ve said about choosing students, but also they’re looking for “potential” which got me like hmm, that could be interesting. nevertheless, I’m pretty happy that I’ve tried. :0 GCSEs in general are quite daunting and I’ve done so many tests, it’s insane 😭 doesn’t help my school is academic as well HAHA but yeah, our mocks are during january, so I think it’s nice we have the whole christmas holiday. (I feel like I’ll regret saying that.) hope you don’t mind me asking, but what year are you in? or have you finished school haha