Dollar Academy Entrance Test

PREP 1 & PREP 2
You will be invited to bring your child for an interview and a short assessment with Mrs Morrison and other members of the Prep School staff. This will normally take place in late January or early February.

PREP 3 TO PREP 5
Entry is by assessment, normally on the last Saturday in January each year (28th January 2012, 9.30am - 12pm).

JUNIOR 1 AND JUNIOR 2 (P6 & P7)
Entry is normally by the main Entrance Examination which takes place on the last Saturday in January each year (28th January 2012, 9.30am - 1.15pm). Arrangements can be made for pupils who do not live locally to sit the Entrance Examination in their own schools. Pupils who become ten in the calendar year of their proposed entry to Junior 1 sit papers in English, Mathematics and Verbal Reasoning. Pupils who become eleven take more advanced papers for entry into Junior 2.

FORM I & FORM II (S1 & S2)

Entry is normally by the main Entrance Examination which takes place on the last Saturday in January each year (28th January 2012, 9.30am - 1.15pm). Pupils are asked to sit papers in English, Mathematics and Verbal Reasoning. Applicants for Form II are also asked to sit a Modern Language paper.

ADMISSIONS AT OTHER AGES
Pupils applying for entrance to Forms l and ll are generally asked to sit papers in English and Maths, and to take a Verbal Reasoning Test. Pupils for Form ll are also asked to sit a Modern Language Paper. For entrance to Forms lll, lV , V and Vl, pupils are assessed by public examination results, a report from the previous school, and, wherever possible, an interview.

FORM VI AWARDS
The Governors offer an award to those pupils entering Form VI who have obtained 5 or more A Band 1 passes in SQA Higher examinations at Dollar Academy.

BOARDING BURSARIES
As the Assisted Places Scheme in the school has now been completely phased out by the government, the Governors have offered limited funding to support bursaries for boys and girls entering Dollar Academy as boarders. The tuition school fee, £3,147 per term in the Senior School, will usually require to be paid in full. The boarding element, currently £4,035 per term, may have bursary support. Bursaries are means tested and parental income will be assessed.

The Governors have recommended that high standards be attached to these bursaries, and Dollar Academy pupils who have been awarded them will be re-assessed each year, as will their financial circumstances. The intention, is, however, to provide significant support to a number of boys and girls throughout their senior school careers.

If you would like your child to be considered now or in the future for entry to the Academy, please return the application for enrolment form to the Registrar, along with a registration fee of £20 and a copy of your child's birth certificate as well as a passport photo. Cheques should be crossed and made payable to Dollar Academy.

If you have any queries regarding the admissions process, please contact Elaine Gallagher on 01259 742511 or email

elaine@dollaracademy.org.uk

ENTRANCE EXAMINATIONS
Although the examinations are not basically pass/fail examinations, they tell us which pupils are sufficiently able to benefit from a Dollar Academy education. The examinations are held on the last Saturday in January each year. Intending day pupils sit the examination at the school, along with prospective boarders who can reach us. Applicants who live at a distance often take the examination in their own schools. The pattern of the examination is indicated below.

Junior 1, Junior 2 (P6 and P7) & Form l

(a) Mathematics

(b) English:
Reading Candidates are required to complete a “cloze” reading passage from which a reading age will be established.
Writing We ask pupils to produce a piece of creative writing on a subject which will allow them to display their ability to handle language competently and accurately, using an appropriate and interesting range of vocabulary.

(c) Verbal Reasoning Test

The standard of each test reflects the year of entry.

FORM II
Pupils take papers in Mathematics, English, Verbal Reasoning and a Modern Language.

FORMS III, IV, V AND VI
Pupils are judged by school report and, where possible, by interview.

Children who are successful in the entrance tests and other assessment procedures will be placed in a suitable year group, and, where relevant, in the most appropriate teaching sets. Much time is spent on making such decisions, and parents are asked to respect the professional experience of those undertaking the assessment.