Bolton School Girls’ Division: Entry to Years 8-10 (12+, 13+ and 14+)
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Table of Contents
Introduction
Bolton School is an independent day school for boys and girls aged 0-18. It is located on an impressive 32-acre campus and attracts pupils from a wide geographical area. Pupils are in a co-educational environment in the Nursery and Infant School before moving on to a single-sex education in the Junior and Senior School. The Girls’ Senior School is known as the Girls’ Division.
Academic standards at Bolton School are high. In 2024, 60% of GCSE grades in the Girls’ Division were in the 9-7 range, which is considerably above the national average. 72% of A Level grades were in the A*-B range. These impressive results mean many girls secure places at top universities.
Bolton School is rightly proud of its extra-curricular programme, which features over 100 clubs and activities. The provision for those passionate about drama, music or sport is particularly strong. Additionally, plenty of trips are arranged, including excursions to the school’s own outdoor pursuits centre, enabling students to lead a rich and rewarding life outside of the classroom.
A caring, friendly environment enables students to thrive at Bolton School. Staff establish strong relationships with pupils, putting them in an excellent position to offer support and guidance when necessary. PSHE lessons and regular assemblies aid pupils’ personal development and address important issues such as bullying and mental health.
If you are interested in your daughter joining the Girls’ Division in Year 8, 9 or 10, please read on.
Bolton School Girls’ Division: Contact Details and Years 8-10 (12+, 13+ and 14+) Entry Admissions Process
Address: Chorley New Road, Bolton, BL1 4PA
County: Greater Manchester
Admissions info: [email protected] or 01204 840201
School type: Independent day school
Entrance assessment: Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select)
Girls typically join the Girls’ Division in Year 7. However, if you want a place for your daughter in Year 8, 9 or 10, it is worth contacting the school to see if they have a place in the relevant year or expect one to become available. It is also worth arranging to visit Bolton School to ensure it is a good fit for your daughter. An open morning is held in October, or you could schedule a personal tour.
For Years 8-10 entry, your daughter will be required to sit an entrance assessment—the online CEM Select. Additionally, as part of the admissions process, her most recent school report will be reviewed, and a reference will be requested from her current school. She can also expect to be interviewed.
You should find out whether your daughter has been offered a place within a few days of her sitting the CEM Select.
Please note that scholarships and bursaries are not available for entry into Years 8-10.
Bolton School Girls’ Division: CEM Select Online Assessment
For Year 8, Year 9 or Year 10 entry to Bolton School Girls’ Division, your daughter will sit the CEM Select, an online assessment created by the Centre of Evaluation and Monitoring (CEM). The test comprises verbal, non-verbal and numerical reasoning questions.
- The verbal reasoning questions will test your daughter’s vocabulary, including her ability to understand a given passage and make inferences.
- The non-verbal reasoning questions will assess your daughter’s ability to recognise shapes and match patterns. Spatial awareness is essential for these questions.
- The numerical reasoning questions will evaluate your daughter’s knowledge of mathematical concepts, her ability to manipulate numbers and her problem-solving skills.
The CEM Select online assessment has the following methods to answer questions, which your daughter may not be familiar with:
- Drag and drop: your daughter will have to use a mouse or trackpad to drag and drop an answer into the correct place on the computer screen.
- Auto-complete: your daughter must start typing her answer into the space on the screen. If she is typing in the correct answer, the computer will complete it for her, allowing her to move on to the next question.
- Multiple-choice: your daughter will use the mouse or trackpad to select the correct answer from a group of answer choices.
It is imperative to highlight that CEM makes it clear that no candidate will be expected to complete all the sections of the test, so your daughter should not approach the entrance exam with the expectation of answering every question.
Bolton School Girls’ Division: Preparing for the Year 8, 9 or 10 (12+, 13+ or 14+) CEM Select Online Assessment
Preparing for a competitive entrance test is crucial. We recommend the following to help make the process effective and as stress-free as possible:
- Ensure your daughter gets enough sleep at night, eats healthily and exercises regularly, all of which will help her mental and physical wellbeing.
- Encourage your daughter to read a wide variety of texts to expand her vocabulary and boost her reading comprehension. Reading is also a great way to wind down before bedtime.
- Avoid long study sessions to prevent the preparation process from feeling overwhelming. Shorter sessions will allow your daughter to focus effectively for the entire time and not feel that studying is taking over her life.
- Praise your daughter for putting in time and effort to prepare for the entrance exam and for all her achievements. This will help her develop a positive mindset and stay motivated, which is vital for success.
Knowing what to expect in the CEM Select is invaluable. For this reason, we have produced CEM Select practice tests. Working through them will help your daughter in the following ways:
- She will become familiar with the types of questions she will be asked in the entrance test. Knowing what to expect will considerably reduce any nervousness that could impact her performance on her assessment day.
- She will get used to answering questions while under time pressure, meaning the time constraints of the actual test will not faze her.
- She will become proficient in navigating the online interface.
- Her confidence will grow as she works her way through our practice tests, learning from her mistakes and improving her scores.
Please take a look at our practice tests and targeted resources below.
Bolton School Girls’ Division: CEM Select Resources for Years 8-10 Entry
Online Practice Tests
These full mock tests are designed to provide your daughter with highly accurate practice ahead of her Cambridge Select Insight Assessment. Each practice test covers Verbal, Non-Verbal and Numerical Reasoning, replicating the modules, timings and question types used in the actual exam.
Each test contains unique content but they are all pitched at the same difficulty level as the actual assessment. This means you can easily benchmark your daughter’s progress as she works through the practice tests, quickly identifying her strengths and weaknesses.
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Practice Test 1
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Practice Test 2
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Practice Test 3
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Practice Test 4
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Practice Test 5
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Practice Test 6
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Practice Test 7
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Practice Test 8
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Practice Test 9
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Practice Test 10
Save 30% by purchasing our Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Practice Tests Bundle, including all ten tests. Click the button below to learn more:
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Alternatively, click the buttons below to purchase Bundles of five of our Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Practice Tests. You will save 25% compared to buying each product individually.
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Online Skill Practice
Each of our Skill Practice tests is designed to focus on one specific question type that can come up in the Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) exam. They are ideal for targeted practice and an efficient way to quickly improve your daughter’s scores in each topic.
Verbal Ability
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Comprehension Pack 1
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Comprehension Pack 2
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Missing Words Pack 1
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Missing Words Pack 2
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Related Words
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Anagrams
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Shuffled Sentences
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Letter Connections
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Multiple Meanings
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Selected Letters
Non-Verbal Ability
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Pictures
Numerical Ability
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Arithmetic
Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Data Problems
Save 30% by purchasing our Cambridge Select Insight (CEM Select) Skill Practice Bundle, including all 13 products. Click the button below to learn more:
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If you have any questions about our resources or need any help with them, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. We wish your daughter all the best in her CEM Select entrance test and her future educational journey.
The information in this post was believed to be correct at the time of publishing. However, please be aware of possible future changes. We advise you to contact the school directly if you are unsure of anything. School contact details are provided within the post.
Please note that Pretest Plus is an independent publisher of practice tests and not affiliated with or endorsed by the publishers of the CEM Select test or any other test publisher.
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