Year 9/12
Criteria for Admission
The Board of Governors delegates to an Admissions Panel, comprising of the Principal and Vice Principals, the application of the admissions criteria to Years 9, 10, 11 and 12. The school will only consider applications for a place commencing at the beginning of the academic year. Admissions to Years 9, 10, 11 and 12 will be within the limit set by the school. This cannot exceed the overall enrolment number agreed with the Department of Education or the limit on numbers in science classes in Years 9, 10, 11 and 12.
Candidates who wish to transfer into Years 9, 10, 11 and 12 should complete an online application form which can be found in the admissions pages on the school website: www.stpatricksacademy.org .
Applications received after the closing date, Friday 16 May 2025, will not be considered. Candidates are required to provide a copy of their most recent school report by Friday 16 May 2025.
The first criterion for entry into Years 9-12 at St Patrick’s Academy is academic ability. Those seeking admission will be required to show that they have the capacity to cope with the academic demands of a grammar school. Candidates will come into school for an Assessment Day in June 2025.
- Candidates will be given a Cognitive Ability Test;
- Candidates may be given an English and/or Mathematics test;
- Candidates who wish to enter Years 10 and 11 may be given a Science test;
- Candidates who wish to enter Years 10 and 11 may be given a Modern Language test;
- Candidates may be interviewed by members of the Admissions Panel;
The admissions panel will decide whether the candidate should be considered for admission on the basis that their educational evidence shows that they have the capacity to cope with the academic demands of a grammar school. Where vacancies are identified in a particular year group, a rank order of candidates will be drawn up and places offered.
For candidates with a Special Educational Need, parents/carers should make the school aware by completing the relevant section of the online form referred to above. This should be verified by supporting documents and provided by the Friday 16 May 2025 deadline.
- Transfer to Year 12, the year of the main external examinations, is unlikely to be considered.
- Transfer to Year 11, is unlikely to be considered after mid-term of Term One.
- St Patrick’s Academy reserves the right to contact the candidate’s present school for a reference before a place is offered.
- Should a place become available after Monday 1 September 2025, the school will retain the list of candidates in ranked order and this list will be used as a waiting list by the school to determine which candidate(s) can be admitted up to the school’s Admissions Assessment Day in June 2026. (Please refer to the school’s waiting list policy).