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16 August 2018
St Helen and St Katharine today celebrates an outstanding set of A-level results.The 94% of students achieving A*–B grades and 75% of students achieving all A*–A grades is testament to the diligence and passion of the students and staff.
Headmistress, Rebecca Dougall says: “We are enormously proud of all our students achieving such fantastic results. It’s also hugely rewarding to see the hard work of our brilliant teachers translate into opportunities for our students beyond St Helen’s. The universities and conservatoires that await them are very lucky!”
The School’s focus on independent studying and thinking for yourself in sixth form, contributes to the confidence with which students face and triumph in their exams. The first year of fully rolling out the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) has brought stellar results: 32 A*s in a wide variety of subjects including suffragette propaganda, AIDS, the Medici, linguistics and Beethoven. Emily, who for her EPQ looked at childhood trauma and how it is linked to crime, describes the experience: “It was really interesting doing my own, independent research. I knew it would keep me interested”.
An EPQ can be a powerful tool to a smooth transition to university. ‘It requires evidence of planning, preparation, research and independent learning. These are skills that are valuable for study at university,’ states the Russell Group, while UCAS extols it: ‘students can tailor their project to fit their individual needs, choices and aspirations’.
The parents of outgoing Head Girl Clare, who is heading to the University of Oxford to study economics and management, have nothing but praise for St Helen’s:
“It’s been an amazing school throughout the seven years, very supportive. Clare has been incredibly happy every day, Oxford has got a lot to live up to!”
Clare is certainly planning to come back to the School and will be joining a vibrant alumnae community with lots of opportunity for professional networking as well as mentoring current students. With the motto ‘All you need is a HelKat and tea’, Universi-tea pal is St Helen’s latest initiative to help connect students who are starting university with alumnae already there, offering our leavers a friendly face to meet up with in a new place.
Two of the students who joined St Helen’s for the Sixth Form have both achieved sets of A*/As and assured their dream of reading medicine, Megan will be going to Birmingham and Bethany to Southampton. Megan’s delighted parents noted: “St Helen’s has done her extremely well both academically and socially. We wanted her to be in a bigger environment before going to university, it’s been brilliant.”
“Each student’s journey throughout their school career to this day will be different and so much of my job is about ensuring that each of them has achieved success as they define it. Today is a celebration of all that our Upper Sixth students have achieved and I know that there is a bright future ahead of each of these young women,” concludes Mrs Dougall.
