London Academy of Excellence 2017

From what I remember, it was after school, and I came in my shirt and tie.
They told us to sit down to the side while they got ready. When you saw an interviewer free, you could go up and have your interview. The questions were fairly standard, asking about the subjects I had chosen, my predicted grades, future plans, extra-curricular, why I want to go here, etc.

I ended up declining my offer, as I heard from students that it itself isn't all that - yes, the facilities are modern, up-to-date, but that only helps tech, science subjects really. For the others, you only need a white/interactive board and a classroom. Many said that it does provide a lot of help; sessions after-school, etc. but I didn't want to leave my current secondary school as I was accustomed to it. Leaving may've encouraged me to focus more, knuckle-down and work hard (with travel and a new environment pressuring me to get on top of my work) but it would've meant relying on the tube (not so good) and having to settle-in, etc. It was easier to stay put for me (and parents thought it best to keep to where I've been for so long now.)

Don't stress the interview too much - they just want to see if your the kind-of person they want there. Just scan their website for their 'values' and stuff they encourage, and if you have the grades, you've got a good chance.

No worries - lemme know how it goes! When is the big day anyway?

I've got one for the 4th of March. Keep wavering between excited and deathly anxious.

A few independent schools and LAE

Got an interview, but heard enough negative things from former students that makes me worried. Read their Ofsted report which said that 'students don't make enough progress' and there was an article that said they kicked students out https://www.google.co.uk/amp/schoolsweek.co.uk/lae/amp/?client=safari Also they've banned prayers!

Yeah, I was a bit wary of their Ofsted report too. I was planning on asking them about it when I got the chance though because that report is from 2014, two years after it opened. I was going to ask what they've done to improve since and I think that'll give me a better idea of what they're like than just the potentially outdated report alone.

As for the rumours, I'm going to ask about their retention rates too.

I reckon I'll be able to see through any lies with enough research.