Senior School Interview & Entrance Assessment Process for September 2024 Entry

Deadline for registrations for Year 7-10 2024 – 31 October 2023

International candidates should contact admissions@sjcr.org.uk for their remote interview and assessment arrangements.

Year 7 interview and assessment

There is a four step process:

Interviews for registered applicants for September 2024 entry will take place in November 2023. Once you have registered, you will receive further details. No preparation is required.
The Entrance Assessment Day for September 2024 entry will take place on Friday 5 January 2024 for candidates in the UK.
Review of a recent school report
Review of a reference from the applicant’s current or most recent school

Additional interview and assessment dates are available if you register after these dates.

The assessment comprises:

Online assessment – Maths, English, Non Verbal Reasoning, Verbal Reasoning, Problem Solving and Creative Comprehension (1 hour 35 minutes)
Descriptive Writing task by hand (45 minutes)

A familiarisation exercise for the online assessment and an example of our Descriptive Writing task are below.

Offers from the January assessment are made, with the outcome of your application for means-tested financial assistance (if applicable), by 31 January 2024. The deadline for acceptance of a place is 6 March 2024.

Years 8-10 interview and assessment

There is a four step process:

Interviews for registered applicants for September 2024 entry will take place in November 2023. Once you have registered, you will receive further details. No preparation is required.
The Entrance Assessment Day for September 2024 entry will take place on Friday 5 January 2024 for candidates in the UK.
Review of a recent school report
Review of a reference from the applicant’s current or most recent school

Additional interview and assessment dates are available if you register after this date.

The assessment comprises:

CEM MidYIS online assessment (50 minutes) – this tests Vocabulary, Mathematics, Non Verbal and Skills (practice papers are not available)
Descriptive Writing task by hand (45 minutes) – similar to Year 7 task above

Offers from the January assessment are made by 31 January 2024. The deadline for acceptance of a place is 6 March 2024.

Year 12 interview and Taster Day

Interview with the Head and Head of Sixth Form – November
Applicants must supply a recent school report, their predicted GCSE (or equivalent) grades, their top four Options choices and a reference from their current or most recent school.

Deadline for registration 1 November 2023 (Late applications will be considered).
Taster Day – Tuesday 14 November
Offers, conditional on required GCSE results, are made in December
The acceptance deadline is 26 January 2024

International Students

For Year 7 applicants:

Interview (either in person or remote)
Online and written assessment (either in person or remote) as per Year 7 above
International candidates who have not been educated in English for the last two years, will have an EAL assessment as part of their application process.

For Year 8-10 applicants:

Interview (either in person or remote)
Online assessment (as per Year 8-10 above) and written English Comprehension task (either in person or remote)
International candidates who have not been educated in English for the last two years, will have an EAL assessment as part of their application process.

For Year 12 applicants:

Process as per Year 12 above.

If the applicant is not following a GCSE/iGCSE pathway, a Statement of Comparability to evaluate their school qualifications will be required in advance of an offer being made.

Deposit

Please note that if you are not in the UK at the time of an offer of a place being made, we require two terms’ fees in advance in addition to the standard £500 deposit.

Please contact admissions@sjcr.org.uk for further information.

Testimonials

“I have been very impressed with the way that St Joseph’s has handled the very difficult time during the Pandemic and the boys have thrived under the school. It has really been an amazing start to their lives”

Parent Testimonial

“We have all loved the boys time at St Joseph’s and I cannot speak highly of both the teaching and pastoral care the boys have received.”

Parent Testimonial

“Pupils have a very positive attitude towards supporting other people both within the school and the wider community.”

ISI Report May 2022

“Pupils embrace positively the diversity of their school and respect and value their differences.”

ISI Report May 2022

“Pupils display an excellent level of responsibility for their own behaviour and appreciate the needs of others.”

ISI Report May 2022

“Pupils achieve success in a wide range of activities both within and beyond the classroom.”

ISI Report May 2022

“Pupils have a strong focus in lessons and work positively, both as independent and collaborative learners.”

ISI Report May 2022

“Pupils make strong progress and achieve results in examinations that exceed the expectations of their predictions.”

ISI Report May 2022

“Pupils are highly confident and resilient individuals but without any sense of brashness or arrogance, looking ahead positively to what they can achieve.”

ISI Report May 2022

“Pupils are highly focussed in class and show an excellent attitude towards their learning.”

ISI Report May 2022

“It's a warm and friendly environment with excellent teachers who genuinely care. The children are provided with the tools and support they need to fulfill their potential. The school is value for money and provides plenty of extra-curricular activities.”

parent of a pupil at St Joseph’s

“What makes St Joseph’s special is the community, the passion of the staff for making the best learning environment and the pastoral care.”

parent of a pupil at St Joseph’s

“St Joseph’s is an extremely nurturing and supportive community for my daughter to learn and develop.”

parent of a pupil at St Joseph’s

“What makes St Joseph’s different is the attention to detail, the family atmosphere across all ages and the spiritual worship and values that are promoted in learning. The mix of years on one site is very unique.”

parent of a pupil at St Joseph’s

“St Joseph’s has a caring community which shines through in all sorts of ways - e.g. staff seem to know your child (no matter how quiet), they respond to things quickly; occasions like Christmas and Easter concerts are thoughtful and moving; quirks and differences are accepted.”

parent of a pupil at St Joseph’s

“What I like most about St Joseph’s is its small size and caring attitude. It’s also run like a business which gives me confidence that the fees are being used wisely and also kept at a reasonable level.”