小妹請問邊一間英國boarding school 好?

joycemade

我今年九月會去英國讀sixth form, agent 揾左三間學校,做完test,三間都有offer.

(1) Mount School (York)
(2) Haberdashers' Monmouth for Ladies
(3) Plymouth College

現在頭痛選那間好. 我在港雖然讀Band 1学校, 但我就讀得好辛苦,成績又唔好, 我知英國學費很貴,我希望可以升到大學.

(1) 和(2) agent 話學校會谷學生,有壓力好似香港d學校, 個agent sell 第(3),話會讀得開心,但我又擔心讀完兩年入唔到好d大學,令父母失望。捱,有冇人知道三間学校的資料,学校網頁已看過,好似差唔多。

謝謝!

Maria

4eyesDad

Maria,

It is not difficult to get into a university in the UK. It is a question of which university and which course. So you don't need to worry about it now.

Your existing school result in HK is no reflection of what you may achieve in 2 years' time. And I know of many students who found it hard in HK could succeed abroad. All you need to do is to concentrate and think constantly (remember the costs to your parents).

Your 3 schools are quite different. What subjects will you take?

Generally, one can concentrate better in an all girls' environment. And I think Mount School, York, is slighter more famous than HMSG but you should know something about Quaker before you go.

Plymouth College is a co-ed school miles away from London in a relax (i.e. holiday) part of the South West of England (something like our Discovery Bay). York is not much closer to London but at least you will be closer to several major cities for arts and culture rather than sailing and fishing.  

You want to go to a good university. So you need to learn how to think independently in a less distracted enviornment. So you should go for Mount School or HMSG. Other things being equal, I would opt for Mount School.

Good luck and wish you every success.

joycemade

其實邊間学校我A-level都會選修physical education, 大学都希望係有關學系,所以有些少傾向Plymouth College, 人地話more active and contemporay, 無禁traditional and academic.  唔知對不對呢?

Maria

4eyesDad

You should be aware that many top universities do not recognize Physical Education at A-Level.

Since you said 擔心讀完兩年入唔到好d大學, you should think twice about PE at A-Level - unless you have other good A-Level choices.

What other subjects do you want to take at A-Level? Are you strong at one or two particular sports? Are you thinking of sports as a career, either professionally or in teaching? Or you just want an easy life and read less books?

Your three schools here are not exactly top tier schools in the UK. The obvious concern is that since your parents are going to spend lots of money on you in the next 5 or 6 years, and if you just pick the easiest course/school, then you must have a realistic expectation that you are less likely to go to a top university and your goal is more about fun/enjoyment than anything else.

As an exercise, you could write down your goals and plan how you will achieve your goals in the next 3 or 5 years.

joycemade

I am a sportive person and I am particular good at swimming, got some medals in inter-school competitions.  That's why I would like to study PE.  However I understand that not may University offer Sports Science Degree and it is also not easy to find a job in this profession in HK.  That's my confusion.  Due to 3-3-4, I am limited to choose only Maths, Physics, Psycology and PE in my A-level.  
Go back to the question of Plymouth College, is it a right choice for me then?
Maria

4eyesDad

I admire people who have a clear view of what they want to do and have the courage to follow their plan.

You want to get a degree in Sports Science and you know it is not easy to find a job with that degree in HK. That is a dilemma, and a reality, not confusion.

True, a degree in Sports Science may not land you a high paid job at Goldman or the Monetary Authority but you will not be the sole bread-winner in your future household or you want a non-Investment banker’s lifestyle anyway, don’t you?  

When one is good at something and is honest and passionate about it, it will always lead to a decent life. Although in HK, it could well be a very modest and humble life without any other support.

Back to your question: Is Plymouth College a right choice for you? I don’t really know. It depends on what you mean by “a right choice”. There are too many variables and it also depends on individual circumstances, including your family’s situation, your Guardian’s place of abode in the UK, your willingness to travel, your circle of friends in the UK, your willingness to work, your sense of priorities, your knowledge of the local community, your abilities to take risk, your school reports, and your endowment, etc. How often will you visit HK? Do you mind to travel 4 or 5 hours each time from the school to London’s Heathrow Airport?

You mentioned in your original post that 在港雖然讀Band 1学校, 但我就讀得好辛苦,成績又唔好. You should be pleased to know that in the UK, they are more interested in your thinking abilities than in your memory ability which HK seems to place paramount importance in school exams.

If your 成績is not all that good, what make you think you will be good at Maths and Physics at A-Level? Do you like the subjects but you feel the teaching in your present school (even it is a Band 1 school) in HK is bad? What do you mean by 辛苦? I studied in the UK before. I must say I did not like the teaching style in HK at all. So, I dropped Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Maths, and Additional Maths after taking O-Levels in the UK because I knew I would enjoy other subjects at A-Levels and could achieve good grades for university entrance purposes. Have you considered taking new subjects at A-Levels or taking the IB Diploma programme? You’ll be surprised how good you can be when you are doing something you really enjoy!

You are good at swimming. That’s good. But remember swimmer Michael Phelps did not get (or need) a degree at all. Who is your role model?

If I may say so, there are two by the way comments on your plan. A-Level Biology could be a more useful and relevant subject for Sports Science. Generally, the US is stronger than the UK in sports. Have you thought about heading to the US (particularly Florida) at some stage (e.g. for university/post-secondary college/post grad studies)?

Perhaps you meant to ask: Is Plymouth College a right choice among the three UK school offers? If that is the case, then you could try to delay making a firm commitment until you have a personal visit to all three schools after your exam in May/June. Write to the schools and explain your situations now. They’ll understand. It could be costly to travel but I personally think that it will be money well spent.

memomixer

原帖由 joycemade 於 11-5-22 23:40 發表
I am a sportive person and I am particular good at swimming, got some medals in inter-school competitions.  That's why I would like to study PE.  However I understand that not may University offer Spo ...

Maria,
4eyesDad的篇幅語重深長,我也簡單建議幾點請你考慮:
.sixth form是過渡性,目標是揀大學,選boarding school應以讀那間大學為依歸.
.體能表現與學術研究有不同,不要太早下定論,英倫校園讀完2年sixth form你或許會發掘真正適合自己興趣.
.無論家境富裕也好,金錢要用得其所,agent是方便但有利益關係,要找最適合自己的學校,不要但求逃出香港相就.
.留意社區文化,同學融合,英國東南西北中的社區和天氣一樣,差異大,例如紐卡素,利物浦,愛丁堡的口音分別很大,還有華人子弟遍及全國,有好有不好,求學不要小圈子.
.多思考,多講,有禮.

[ 本帖最後由 memomixer 於 11-5-24 21:06 編輯 ]

4eyesDad

Maria,

Memomixer is absolutely right:"留意社區文化,同學融合,...求學不要小圈子,多思考,多講,有禮."

There is an article called "學英倫的港僑圈子" in today's Hone Kone Economic Journal: http://www.hkej.com/template/dne ... ews_id=3111&title_id=434108

Good luck!

YauMum

Dear Maria,

Here is a link to give you a brief idea of BSc (Hon) Sport Science in UK,

http://www.independent.co.uk/stu ... cience-1623530.html

Mind you, those students I met, not just sportive, they have hearts for it.  Not much written works, as far as I learnt from them.

Also, their A levels results were not bad at all for entering the U.

Work hard for it.  

YauMum