Hey! So currently I’m a y11 in a non-selective state school & I recently managed to get a conditional offer for Hwsf. I wanted to post here to give some advice about what you should expect for each part of the application process, from applying to the requirements.
APPLICATION:
I applied roughly about the time the application form posted on their website. It’s all relatively straightforward; they ask for your information, if you have free school meals (please mention this in the application as it can make the requirements vary a lot!!!), etc. In the application they will ask for the 4 subjects you want to study at A-level, 2 subjects you want to do exams in AND what subject you would like to do an interview IF you manage to get to the next stage (these all need to overlap with each other). Make sure the subjects you choose are your strongest as the competition is intense 🥲.
EXAM:
So for the subjects, I chose maths, further maths, physics and chemistry. I chose to do exams in physics and maths (maths was mandatory because of choosing both maths & fm). You need a form of id for the exam, so either your passport or your zip card. Both papers mentioned here were multiple choice (if that helps)
The first exam I had (maths) was definitely a big challenge. It was non-calculator & done online. I (very mistakenly) only brung 2 A6 pages to do my workings on, which was definitely not enough 😭. According to many, maths was by far one of the hardest exams they had this year (so it makes this feel a bit more valid). In my opinion, knowing the maths GCSE’s curriculum back-to-back may not be enough. The questions were similar to an intermediate UKMT paper, so you could probably use those for practice.
The second exam I had was physics. This exam allowed a calculator and (again) done online. I would say this exam was definitely much easier than the previous one, as you only really needed to know stuff from the GCSE (however I may be biased as I do triple, so sorry to those who do combined 😖). What I did for revision was do practice questions the days leading up to the exam as preparation.
Overall for the exam, I got a 481/540 (I heard it was out of 540) and the threshold for my priority was 433/540.
INTERVIEWS:
As previously stated, I only had to do an interview for one subject. For this, I chose maths. I had the earliest time slot (8:30) along with at least 100+ other people. Again, you’ll need Id in order to sit your interview, so your passport or zip card.
The wait for my subject was ≈1 hour as we got split up into different subject fields (stem stayed downstairs, humanities went upstairs). To be fair, I was one of the last people in the room, so you are much more likely to have your interview earlier.
When I had the interview, the first stage was a question: they asked me what part of the subject I liked. I had an advantage in this as I managed to get into a maths programme back in y8 so was able to comment on something many wouldn’t usually know. Additionally, I embedded this with a popular unsolved maths problem (3n+1) to show how I truly understood the concept. So for this section, I would highly recommend you learn something that would “wow” your interviewer.
The second stage was a random maths question, I heard these questions were different with each person, so probably don’t try & steal a friend’s answer from a previous time slot. The question they gave you was definitely a stretch from a regular GCSE maths question. What I would recommend you do is say your thoughts out loud as it gives the interviewer an insight onto how you think & problem solve throughout. You’ll also be required to explain your reasoning behind your choices, so trial & error most likely won’t cut it alone. I ended up managing to prove that my question had no solution, so that may account for my overall score.
Overall for the interview, I got 141/160 (again, I heard it was out of 160).
ACCEPTANCE:
So the results of my interview were released towards the end of March a day earlier than expected. For my priority (3(&4)), I needed a minimum of a 551, and for the other priorities (1&2), you needed a minimum of a 440. I ended up getting a 622 and ended up getting in despite the fact that the school was oversubscribed.
The offer requires me to get at least 6 GCSEs with a G7 or above, including the subject I chose, and a minimum of a G4 in English (+maths technically but I need G7 as I chose it).
OVERALL:
Prepare for the absolute worst, stand out, but don’t stress too much (remember you’ve got GCSEs soon!). Gl to anyone doing GCSEs now & in the future 🫶
P.S: It’s results day today, I got a 9999888777 but have decided to attend another school as their offer is more preferable to me.
