Year 9 Entry

An applicant at school in Hong Kong should register with Ms Battie Fung at Academic Asia in Hong Kong or visit www.academic-asia.com. Tel: +852 2833 0919. 

An applicant at school in China should register with Mr Howe Wu or  Mr Tommy Meng at UK Boarding Schools Admissions Service or visit www.ukboardingschools.org.uk. Tel: +86 (0)21 5266 0095.

Please contact these representatives for details of our admissions process in these locations. 

An applicant who attends a prep school in the UK should inform his current school that he is required to sit the ISEB CPT for Harrow; the school should be familiar with the CPT and will make arrangements for him to take it there. 

An applicant who attends a school that does not routinely administer the ISEB CPT should ask his current school to supply a suitable testing room with a computer and internet access, along with an administrator to set up and supervise the test. Once organised, the administrator should refer to the information for invigilation centres on the ISEB website for guidance on preparing for the tests. 

An applicant who attends a school overseas should ask his current school to supply a suitable testing room with a computer and internet access, along with an administrator to set up and supervise the CPT. If the applicant's current school is unable to invigilate the test, his local British Council office or another educational establishment may be used as an alternative venue. Once organised, the administrator should refer to the information for invigilation centres on the ISEB website for guidance on preparing for the tests. 

The Admissions Office should be informed if an applicant has already sat the CPT ISEB for another school. We will be able to access his ISEB results upon receipt of his ISEB Applicant ID. Please note that applicants can only sit the CPT once in any one academic year and only once after registering for Harrow School.  

An applicant at a school that prepares its students for the full suite of CE subjects (Mathematics, English, Science, French, Latin, History, Geography and perhaps Theology, Philosophy and Religion (TPR)) and who has been offered a place at Harrow will be expected to sit all these papers in June of Year 8. Indeed, we would strongly support and encourage this.

This applicant will be required to sit the Core level papers in English, Mathematics and Science and the Level 2 or Level 3 papers in Latin and French (depending on ability). All the papers of the French exam should be taken. If the applicant is good at Mathematics and is aiming for the highest Mathematics sets when they start at Harrow in September of Year 9, then the applicant should sit the Additional paper in addition to the Core papers. We encourage applicants to stretch themselves and we weight the CE results to reward those who attempt the more challenging papers.

An applicant at a school which teaches some but not all of the CE subjects and who has been offered a place at Harrow will be expected to sit the Mathematics (Core), English (Core) and Science (Core) papers in June of Year 8 as a minimum. If the applicant is good at Mathematics and is aiming for the highest Mathematics sets when they start at Harrow in September of Year 9, then the applicant should sit the Additional paper too. Applicants should also sit the French and Latin papers (Level 2 or 3) if they study these subjects at their school. All the papers of the French exam should be taken.

While there is no set pass mark for CE, the results that a boy achieves will be used to determine the initial sets into which he will be placed when he arrives at Harrow. A boy who performs very well in the Academic Scholarship examinations is unlikely to be required to sit the CE examinations.

An applicant at a school that does not prepare for CE at all, for example a state-maintained school or an overseas school (excluding those schools in Hong Kong, Mainland China or Singapore), who has been offered a place at Harrow will be expected to sit CE examinations in three subjects in June of Year 8 as a minimum; namely English (Core), Science (Core) and Mathematics (Core and preferably the Additional paper). We would expect him to sit the Mental Arithmetic paper as part of the Mathematics (Core) exam. He will also be required to sit papers in French and Latin if he studies these subjects at school. If taking French, we would ideally like him to sit the speaking and listening examinations in French in May if possible. He would, however, be expected to sit the French reading and writing written exam in June of Year 8.

A boy who performs very well in the Academic Scholarship examinations is unlikely to be required to sit these CE examinations.

An applicant at a school in Hong Kong, Mainland China or Singapore who has been offered a place at Harrow will sit CE examinations in three subjects in June of Year 8 as a minimum. To secure his place, an applicant is required to sit papers in English (Core), Mathematics (Core AND Additional) and Science (Core). He will also be required to sit papers in French and Latin if he studies these subjects at his school. If taking French, we would ideally like him to sit the speaking and listening examinations in French in May if possible. He would, however, be expected to sit the French reading and writing written exam in June of Year 8.

A boy who performs very well in the Academic Scholarship examinations is unlikely to be required to sit these CE examinations.

An applicant applying for a scholarship will usually sit the first round of Academic Scholarship examinations in January of Year 8 at his own school and the second round at Harrow in late February. A boy who performs very well in the Academic Scholarship examinations is unlikely to be required to sit the CE examinations.