82%
Highgate leavers secured
their first choice of university (2024)
Higher education and careers
We can help with selecting the right university, degree or future career.
With thousands of higher education options available, picking the right institution and course can be challenging. Our Higher Education and Careers Specialists, together with the Sixth Form team, provide advice and assist students throughout the application process, helping you to apply for courses in the UK and abroad.
Preparations begin in Year 12 with:
- higher education talks
- visits to universities
- higher education fair with representatives from most Russell Group universities, gap year and apprenticeship providers
- North American university fair attended by major colleges
I have developed skills in subjects I love, I couldn't have done it without them! —Highgate sixth former, 2022
PERSONAL MENTORS
Each sixth former is assigned a personal mentor from our teaching body, who will guide and support you in planning and preparing your university applications. In this way, we ensure that we offer individually-tailored support to each student regarding university admissions in the UK and abroad. We also have two members of staff to support applications to North American universities for students who want to attend top-ranking institutions in the USA and Canada.
SPECIALIST TEACHERS
Our subject specialist teachers provide personalised guidance about available university courses, while our extension classes let you go beyond the classroom and further develop your interests. These extension classes also help to foster intellectual independence amongst our sixth formers and introduce subjects not taught at Highgate, such as anthropology, architecture, law, sociology, and medicine.
We are justly proud of the higher education achievements of Highgate sixth formers, who study and thrive in universities across the globe.
You can also read more about why we won the Careers Programme of the Year 2020-21 here
There are so many activities taking place that you will always be able to explore things you want —Highgate sixth former, 2022
21
Highgate leavers received places
at Oxbridge (2024)
Careers and employability support
Highgate supports all sixth formers in making informed choices about their future career. We have a full-time Careers and Employability Specialist to ensure everyone receives up-to-date, relevant and useful careers advice.
Our active careers programme is designed to help our sixth formers understand themselves, their personal preferences, interests, and their strengths and attributes. It also provides opportunities to explore and understand the huge range of options available after Highgate.
In addition, we are lucky to be able to draw on the experience and expertise of our dedicated parent body and alumni community, who provide significant support for our many initiatives. If you are interested in providing support in this way, please contact us.
- Activities and events
- One-to-one careers conversations with our Careers and Employability Specialist ensure you gain impartial and independent guidance, explore individual career options, develop your CV, and work on applications for apprenticeships, volunteering and gap year opportunities.
- Our compulsory four-week carousel of PSHE lessons in Year 12, delivered by specialist teachers, starts you thinking about future employability.
- Our annual careers fair lets you talk to representatives from different professions sharing their insights and experiences.
- Mentoring opportunities with industry figures ensure you get to talk about your interests and start thinking about future employment.
- Practice job interviews in Year 12, and gain advice on preparing and submitting a CV for future job applications and interviews.
- Employability days let you learn more about writing cover letters, preparing for interviews and finding work experience.
- A wide range of careers events and talks offer advice on employability and careers options, apprenticeships opportunities, and taking a gap year
