King Edward VI Five Ways School

Pupils must pass an 11-plus entrance exam to get into the school. The entrance examination is tough and only 1 in 10 examinees are successful. The King Edward VI Foundation holds its exams at the same time, and generally a candidate will sit one exam for multiple schools within the foundation. Formerly 155 were selected from each year, from more than 1,500 candidates; with a few more accepted every year on appeal. From September 2014 the school increased its intake to 180 pupils in Year 7. A pupil has the opportunity to list the Foundation schools that he or she prefers, and depending on the results, may get allocated into one of the schools. Students can also enter the school at sixth form level, with places awarded based on GCSE grades, requiring at least a 7 in any subject to be taken, 8 in Maths to take Further Maths, and a 6 in English and Maths if they do not already form part of the offer. Places are highly competitive with students applying from all over Birmingham and the surrounding areas. There are approximately 50 external candidates in each year. Pupils studying at the school in the lower years must get an additional four 7s (or five 8s if they wish to take four A-levels). The Sixth Form has approximately 210 students in each L6 and U6.