Learners

You may have already set your heart on staying at your current school and, for some students, this is a good option. Sixth form is a mere two years and some students may take a while to settle into a new environment. The anxiety of a new place, teachers they don’t know, and the stress of making new friends could detract from their studies. For some, familiarity is preferable, allowing them to focus on their studies from the very start.

However, it’s important that you do not make this decision solely because it’s the easiest or because your best friend is staying. Here are some factors to consider when making your decision:

• Results − What are the school’s results like for the subjects you intend to study? Your school might top the league tables for Maths, but if your child wants to study English Literature and the English department is underperforming, then you may want to consider other options.
• Teachers − It’s important to find out which teachers will be teaching you. Whilst you may love the current biology teacher (which is why you’ve decided to pursue the subject at A-level), a different teacher may teach it in sixth form. If you know their teaching style didn’t work for you in the past, this could hinder your performance.
• Entry Requirements − What are the entry requirements for the sixth form or college and will you safely get in? It’s important to know the exact grades you need to pursue your chosen A-level subjects. If you are on the borderline, it may be a wise decision to pick a backup option; you don’t want to be left high and dry on results day.

It’s also a good idea to look at a few other alternatives, even if it’s only to consolidate your decision. You can do this by looking at other sixth form’s prospectuses or heading to an open day.

Maybe your current school doesn’t have a sixth form, or perhaps you think a fresh start in a new environment is preferable. Here are some possible aspects to consider while searching for the perfect place for you.

A sixth form is connected to a school, while a college is an institution solely specialising in further education. Although the services they offer are broadly the same, they often have different approaches to the way in which they support students, both academically and pastorally. Which one is most suitable depends entirely on you and what kind of environment you feel you will do best in at this stage of your life.

Colleges are usually bigger than sixth forms and have a more hand-off approach to learning. Students are encouraged to take responsibility for their own education and there is often less supervision. This environment would best suit students who enjoy working independently and relish their freedom. Moreover, the hands-off approach that colleges take may better prepare students for university, where contact hours are minimal, and success depends on a student’s ability to organise and motivate themselves, and on their capacity for independent study.

Not all students suit this approach so early in their academic journey. If you require closer supervision in your studies and generally do better with a more fixed support structure around you, then a sixth form may be a more appropriate option. Sixth forms are often smaller than colleges and some students do better in this more intimate setting.

The social environment is something that should be taken into account when choosing a sixth form or college. If you are a social butterfly and enjoy an ever-changing set of faces, then a college environment will likely be ideal. If, on the other hand, you are more introverted, the smaller, more intimate environment of a sixth form may be preferable.

Is one type of institution ultimately better than the other? Not really − it all depends on your character and on what conditions suit you the most.