Sherborne School Admissions: The 11+ Assessment for 13+ Entry

Sherborne School's main entry point is the Third Form at age thirteen. A boy who joins is assessed during Year 6 or Year 7, roughly one to two years beforehand, which is why parents researching an eleven plus route for Sherborne are usually looking at this earlier testing stage: Sherborne has no separate point of entry at eleven.

The process runs from registration, through an online assessment and an in-person assessment day, to an offer from the Headmaster. Occasional places also arise later, in the Fourth Form, and a further intake joins the Sixth Form at sixteen.

How admission to the school works

Boys join Sherborne School by competitive assessment, with the Third Form, Year 9 at age thirteen, as the main entry point; there is no separate entry point at eleven. The school also takes occasional boys into the Fourth Form, Year 10, where places arise, and a further intake joins the Sixth Form, Year 12, at sixteen. Because the assessment that determines a Third Form place is sat during Year 6 or Year 7, families researching an eleven plus route for Sherborne are usually looking at this earlier testing stage; Sherborne has no separate entry point at eleven itself.

What the entrance assessment involves

The assessment for Third Form entry is an online test designed in partnership with Quest, covering English, maths and cognitive ability, and boys may sit it either at their own prep school or at Sherborne itself during the Michaelmas term. No interview or written subject papers are required at this stage; the online assessment is designed to let a boy show his ability across verbal, numerical and reasoning tasks in one sitting. Results feed into the wider admissions decision alongside the assessment day that follows and a reference from the boy's current school.

The assessment day: interview, writing and a group task

Boys who progress from the online assessment attend an assessment day at the school, held early in the following term. The day includes an interview with a senior member of academic staff, a piece of creative writing, and a group task, giving staff several different ways to see a boy's character and ability beyond a single test score. A confidential reference from the boy's current school is considered alongside performance on the day. The Headmaster reviews all of this evidence before making offers, which are released before the half-term break that follows.

Registration and the admissions timeline

Registration for the Third Form is open year-round, with no single deadline, though the school recommends applying by the end of Year 5 so a boy can be entered for assessment in Year 6. Families submit a registration request to the admissions team and pay a registration fee; if a place is later offered and accepted, a deposit secures it. Boys can alternatively be assessed a year later, in Year 7, where that suits the family and the boy's current school better; admissions staff advise on which timing fits a given boy.

• Register with the admissions team, ideally by the end of Year 5
• Sit the online Quest assessment in Year 6 or Year 7, at the boy's own school or at Sherborne
• Attend the assessment day: interview, creative writing and a group task
• Receive the Headmaster's decision, informed by assessment results and a school reference
• Accept the offer and pay the deposit to secure the place

What the fee options are

The school offers three fee tiers, going beyond a simple day or boarding split: full boarding, for boys who board every night of term; day boarding, for day boys who want a guaranteed bed whenever needed, charged with a reduced nightly rate on top; and a day-only option with no routine access to boarding. A compulsory daytime feeding charge applies to day pupils. Sibling discounts apply across the wider Sherborne Schools Group, rising with each additional child concurrently enrolled. Exact termly figures are published on the school's fees page and updated each academic year.

Scholarships and bursaries

Sherborne invites boys entering the Third Form or Sixth Form to apply for scholarships recognising academic ability, music, sport, drama, art or design and technology, with eligibility conditional on also meeting the school's academic entry standard and accepting a place. Award holders gain additional coaching, mentoring, lectures and enrichment activities in their area of talent; the award itself brings little in the way of a fee reduction. Separate from scholarships, the school offers Open Bursaries and additional bursarial support for scholarship and award holders, administered through the admissions office; families are directed to contact admissions for eligibility and application details.

How to prepare for the assessment

Because the Third Form assessment is a single online sitting covering English, maths and cognitive ability, familiarity with the format matters alongside raw ability; a boy who has practised verbal and non-verbal reasoning questions at pace, together with English and maths test technique, is less likely to be thrown by the format on the day. For the assessment day, practising short pieces of creative writing under time pressure and talking through his interests in a mock interview setting can help a boy feel at ease with the interview, writing task and group exercise. A calm, well-rested boy who understands each stage tends to perform closer to his ability than one meeting the format for the first time.

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Preparing for the Sherborne School Admissions 11+ with Taylor Tuition

Families preparing for the Sherborne School Admissions 11+ usually come to us a year or so before the assessment, though shorter runs work where the foundations are already sound. Having prepared pupils for entry to leading independent and grammar schools, with placements including Westminster, St Paul's, Wycombe Abbey and Eton, our tutors build each programme around the format the school actually uses, whether a written paper, an online pre-test, an interview or a combination of them.

More than half of our tutors hold Qualified Teacher Status and around three in five hold a master's degree or doctorate, and the pool includes former heads of department, exam-board examiners and teachers from independent and boarding schools, so the preparation is led by people who know how selective schools assess. Every tutor who works with children holds an enhanced DBS check.

Families in the South and South West and further afield work with us online, and in person in central London. Fees start from £50 per 50-minute session and depend on tutor level and subject, with no registration fee and a free initial consultation to talk through your child's current level and the timeline to the 11+. Families receive progress reports after sessions and have a dedicated point of contact, and we reply to enquiries within one working day with tutor recommendations.

Read more about our 11+ entrance exam tutors, or send an enquiry and we will come back with tutor recommendations.