Upper Sixth students celebrate Oxbridge offers

It’s an exciting time for Upper Sixth students as offers continue to roll in for a range of competitive courses at universities the length and breadth of the country.

Among the offers received are six for Oxford and Cambridge; following a long and highly competitive application process, five current Upper Sixth students and one 2024 leaver are holding offers for the two prestigious universities. 

Head of Sixth Form, Josh Carter, congratulated them on their achievement. 

He said: “Oxbridge is always competitive but it has become far more so over the past ten years with greater competition on an almost yearly basis.

“Therefore, to gain 6 offers from both universities is a wonderful achievement. 

“The success of these students is testament to their hard work and determination throughout the application process and I’d like to extend my congratulations to Alice, Ife, Freya, Sam, Elizabeth and Victoria.”

In King’s Sixth Form, support for Oxbridge applications begins in Lower Sixth.

As well as individual teacher support within their subject areas, a wide range of co-curricular and Enrichment opportunities are available to help students to prepare for interviews and entrance tests, as well as to enhance their application.

For example, the Sixth Form and Staff reading group introduces students to academic articles and research that go beyond the A level specification, and the Pudding Lectures – a long-established King’s institution – give Lower Sixth students an opportunity to engage with their peers on an academic level by presenting, and fielding questions on, a topic of interest to them.

In addition, mock entrance tests are held at the end of the Lower Sixth year, and students are also invited to attend mock interviews.

Deputy Head of Sixth Form, Lee Parkes, co-ordinates the support for Oxbridge applicants and explains the benefits of the mock experiences: “We are lucky enough at King’s to have access to specialists in a wide range of academic fields.

“The mock interviews they carry out with our students are invaluable; they are just as tough as an actual interview at Oxford or Cambridge but, more importantly, the interviewers provide detailed – and very honest – feedback for our students to work on.”

Congratulations to our six Oxbridge offer holders, five of whom are pictured here:

Sam Burchett (U6BRD) – Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology at Clare College, Cambridge

Alice Downey (U6WER) – Maths at St Hugh’s College, Oxford

Freya Kimmance (U6WAL) – Philosophy at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge

Elizabeth Melhuish-Bolton (U6BRD) – Psychological and Behavioural Sciences (PBS) at Selwyn College, Cambridge

Ife Oyedeji (U6LES) – Politics, Philosophy and Economics (PPE) at Hertford College, Oxford

Victoria Szymala (2024 leaver, not pictured) – Human, Social and Political Sciences (HSPS) at Robinson College, Cambridge

• Limited spaces are still available in King’s Sixth Form in September 2025. For more information, contact the Admissions Office on 01244 689553, or email admissions@kingschester.co.uk