Thinking critically - Why do lions have manes?

With the autumn term well underway, our Year 13 students are preparing their applications for University. Every year, our Sixth Formers are accepted on to a wide range of different courses and institutions and last year's list of destinations of leavers was no exception with examples of acceptances including: Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at Cambridge University, Molecular and Cellular Medicine at Bristol University, and French and Russian at Queen Mary, University of London. The personalised support provided by our teaching staff and Sixth Form team is second-to-none and each application is reviewed and checked thoroughly to ensure that every student has the best possible chance of an offer at her chosen universities.

One very important element of the application process, particularly for the more competitive courses, is the interview stage. Recently, Oxford University released sample interview questions along with some helpful guidance and sample answers which make very interesting reading. Examples include, Why do lions have manes?, Where do pirates hide their treasure? and Do bankers deserve they pay they receive?

Elements of our curriculum, enrichment and co-curricular programmes prepare our students incredibly well for such conundrums. Critical thinking starts in Philosophy lessons in Key Stage 3 when students are encouraged to discuss, debate and articulate their thoughts, ideas and opinions. Debating Society, Wollstonecraft enrichment lectures, the Extended Project Qualification and our Sixth Form seminar-style teaching are just a few of the many vehicles for our students to think hard, justify their opinions and form and identify convincing arguments. This will not only help with the university-style interview, but also when dealing with the unknown and unexpected in our girls’ future lives and careers.