The Student Room Group

Transferring from England to Scotland

Hey everyone,
So I live in England and have just completed my GCSEs. I am starting Sixth Form in September. However, me and my family have always loved the idea of living in Scotland and have been talking about maybe moving in the next year. But, the education in Scotland has been really confusing us. I know the year groups are also based off birthdays (I was born in February) but would moving whilst studying for A-levels affect my education? I’m guessing there would be a lot of catching up to do if I moved schools. I have also seen stuff about people having to retake years. I was just wondering whether anyone could really explain the education system for post 16 in Scotland in depth to help me understand. I reckon we probably won’t move until I have my A-levels but I still wonder whether it would be possible to move in the next year?
Original post by r.a.mossy
Hey everyone,
So I live in England and have just completed my GCSEs. I am starting Sixth Form in September. However, me and my family have always loved the idea of living in Scotland and have been talking about maybe moving in the next year. But, the education in Scotland has been really confusing us. I know the year groups are also based off birthdays (I was born in February) but would moving whilst studying for A-levels affect my education? I’m guessing there would be a lot of catching up to do if I moved schools. I have also seen stuff about people having to retake years. I was just wondering whether anyone could really explain the education system for post 16 in Scotland in depth to help me understand. I reckon we probably won’t move until I have my A-levels but I still wonder whether it would be possible to move in the next year?

My understanding is that it's not retake years, it's retake qualifications.

If you've completed GCSEs then you won't need to take National 5s, you can forget about those. What you're probably best doing is starting A levels and then if you move, do Highers in the same subjects. The school you move to will advise you of how many Highers to take, and it will probably depend on how far through the year you join. If you join after 31st March then that's past the deadline for entering you for qualifications.

Do you have long term plans for career pathways in the future?
Original post by r.a.mossy
Hey everyone,
So I live in England and have just completed my GCSEs. I am starting Sixth Form in September. However, me and my family have always loved the idea of living in Scotland and have been talking about maybe moving in the next year. But, the education in Scotland has been really confusing us. I know the year groups are also based off birthdays (I was born in February) but would moving whilst studying for A-levels affect my education? I’m guessing there would be a lot of catching up to do if I moved schools. I have also seen stuff about people having to retake years. I was just wondering whether anyone could really explain the education system for post 16 in Scotland in depth to help me understand. I reckon we probably won’t move until I have my A-levels but I still wonder whether it would be possible to move in the next year?

Hello, I definitely understand your confusion it's difficult to understand at first. Basically, as you've already taken your GCSEs, you will most likely be doing Highers. These are roughly equivalent to the first year of A-levels in England, and allow you to apply to Scottish universities. Typically, you take them in 5 subjects of your choice - often including maths and English. Can I ask what month your birthday is? The Scottish system means that for example, everyone in S5 (rough equiv to Year 12 in England) is 16 at some point in the year, many start off in August (when we start school) at 15 and turn 16 throughout the year. This is because if you have a birthday from September to February, you get put technically "in the year above". While I was pretty young for British school standards in Year 11, I was normal for Scottish schools; many people were both younger and older than me. In S6, assuming you want to go to Scottish unis, this is mainly a chill catch-up year; you don't need to take Advanced Highers (slightly higher than the second year of A-levels) unless you're pursuing a vocational profession (med, dent, law, vet med) - and if you don't get good results in Highers, you can't do these courses.
If you have anymore questions, please ask! Hope this helps!

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