Post 18 Options
Valley Park School has a strong focus within the Sixth Form, on raising aspirations and aiming high professionally. Consequently, many of our students will wish to continue onto university after their level 3 studies.
We are however, acutely aware that with the current high tuition fees, the commitment involved and the ever-growing number of apprenticeship opportunities available, that university is not the best decision for all of our students.
It is imperative that each student makes the right post-18 decision for them, such that they will be happy in their future academic and employment careers. We recommend that you invest time and effort into researching ALL the options available so you make the right choice. Through our core programme of events, we aim support you with you with your options and provide up-to-date advice and guidance.
Applying to University
Recently, we re-evaluated our UCAS processes and the positive effects are clearly evident amongst our Sixth Form students who apply for Higher Education at either university or conservatoires. Outstanding results from this approach are shown by the fact that each year we see excellent offers including many that are contextual (reduced entry requirements) or unconditional.
In 2023, 98% of the cohort who applied to university secured their first-choice place.
The whole Sixth Form team is heavily involved in supporting students in making good choices including, choosing courses and institutions and completing an outstanding application. Students are actively encouraged to attend Open Days and Applicant Days, undertake taster courses and summer residential programmes to aid the decision process.
Each student can seek 1:1 guidance from the Careers Adviser during any stage of the application process: from personal statement checking and proof-reading, to accepting offers, applying for accommodation or the finance process.
In Year 12, all students attend a Higher Education Convention, providing the opportunity to have positive and meaningful encounters with national universities and colleges and to find out more about degree apprenticeships.
The UCAS Process
At Valley Park School we have a bespoke UCAS system which ensures that all students are offered specialist 1:1 support from staff throughout the application process. The process begins in the summer term of Year 12 when students begin to write their personal statements following on from specialist input during workshops.
Teaching staff write personalised references for students regarding their academic ability in their subjects and submit these to the Sixth Form team, who then compile each individual reference, tailoring each reference to the courses and institutions being applied to.
All students are supported with their personal statements through their form tutors and our careers adviser. Once they have completed their application and personal statement, students book 1:1 meetings with the Sixth Form team in order to review their application, their institution and their course choice, alongside the entry criteria and their predicted grades before submitting their final application.
Once students have submitted their application to UCAS, they can monitor their progress on UCAS track where they will receive their personal responses, offers, conditions of offers and communications from the institutions they have applied to.
League Tables
University league tables can be a useful resource for finding good universities for the subjects you wish to study, however there can be substantial differences between these as they take into account different criteria (entry point tariff, spend per student, NSS results etc.) when determining rank order. Therefore, we advise that you look into the criteria they use when using league tables as come criteria may be more important to you than others.
League Tables
World University Rankings
Russell Group Universities
The 24 universities that collectively make up The Russell Group, are world-class, research intensive universities with excellent teaching, great facilities and unrivalled links to businesses and the public sector. Whilst the universities share some distinguishing characteristics, each has its own unique ethos and feeling.
- Visit the Russell Group website and find out more about the group and the individual institutions that are its members.
Many top universities are not part of The Russell Group, so please do use League Tables (see section above) and research online to find out which universities best meet your requirements.
Above all, make sure you visit universities in person.
Find out more about Oxbridge Applications
Apprenticeships
Apprenticeships enable you to undertake employment, learning through real-life situations whilst continuing with your studies within class-based learning. You'll be employed and paid to do a real job and study for a formal qualification such as an HNC/HND or degree - usually for one day a week either at a college or university or via distance learning. You will be treated like all the other employees, with a contract of employment, holiday entitlement and any company benefits on offer.
You will also need to ensure that you meet the education provider's entry criteria, particularly for degree apprenticeships.
By the end of your apprenticeship, you'll hopefully have gained the skills and knowledge needed to either succeed in your chosen career or progress onto the next apprenticeship level.
Students who wish to undertake an apprenticeship at the end of Year 13, would primarily be suited to Advanced (level 3) or higher/degree opportunities (levels 4-6).
Helpful websites to start your search:
Employment & Training
Many students wish to go directly into some form of employment following on from their level 3 studies in Sixth Form. There are many options available to students when considering employment but all require a strong application in the current competitive job market.
Students can arrange to meet with Mrs West to further discuss their CV, cover letters, interviews and online applications.
Work related websites
Subject Specific Careers Websites
Destinations
At Valley Park School, we have a strong message around raising aspirations, encouraging all our students to pursue Excellence and to aim high in order to reach their goals. Consequently, we have an acute understanding that their personal success will be found in a variety of leaver destinations depending on individual interests and career aspirations.
Our most recent destinations for Year 13 leavers in 2021 (correct as of January 2022), includes the following:
- 89% of Year 13 leavers went on to study at university, with 96% securing their first-choice place of study;
- 34% of the cohort secured a place at a Top 50 university (according to the Complete University Guide 2022 League Table);
- 3 students are now undertaking courses at Russell Group universities;
- 7% of the university cohort deferred their university entry until 2022, opting to take a gap year first;
- 8% of the cohort undertook an apprenticeship or school leaver programme after departing Valley Park School;
- 20% went directly into employment - for most students this has been a full-time role;
- 1% of the cohort is currently completing Level 3 or Foundation year courses at local Further Education/Art-specialist colleges.
Popular chosen fields of study for university courses starting in 2021 included:
- The Arts, including Art & Design-related courses and Music;
- Education, and healthcare related courses;
- Business and Finance courses;
- Psychology courses;
- Information Systems courses;
- Humanities courses, particularly History;
- English courses;
- Sports related courses.
