FAQs on Admissions Entrance Assessments at Exeter School

We have sample papers and guidance advice for each level of testing here.

Not necessarily. We take every interaction with your child into account when making a decision about whether we can offer the right educational experience for them moving forward. This also includes previous school reports, references and other test scores like predicted GCSE results (if entering for sixth form).

Verbal reasoning uses words, while non-verbal reasoning uses pictures and diagrams. The capacity to comprehend and logically think over concepts and issues stated in words is known as verbal reasoning. We find that it gives a broader picture of a pupil’s ability at entrance as standards and practices vary from county to county and country to country.

Exeter School evaluates verbal and non-verbal reasoning through a modern computer-based Cognitive Abilities Test (CAT4).

Your child should wear something comfortable. Sometimes, this is their current school uniform as it can help them to concentrate and be in ‘school mode’ and we would ask that uniform is worn if testing at school during term time.

Others prefer something they would wear at home if they are coming for the group assessment day in January. Clothing should be sensible and non-offensive.

Pupils should bring a water bottle and any medication that may be required while with us.

Our admissions staff will let you know how long your child’s level of entrance assessment will take and when to return to collect your child.

An adaptive entrance assessment is a computer-based exam which customises its questions to an online algorithm, actively adjusting the difficulty level based on whether the previous answer was correct or incorrect. The exam begins with a standard, baseline question appropriate for the child’s age group. If your child answers correctly, the algorithm selects a harder question from the question pool. If they answer incorrectly, the system automatically adjusts to serve an easier question to find their baseline ability.

Yes, adaptive admissions tests are fair, and psychometricians generally consider them fairer and more precise than traditional linear tests. [1, 2, 3]
While the concept of children facing entirely different sets of questions can feel counter-intuitive, adaptive testing relies on advanced statistical models—specifically Item Response Theory (IRT)—to measure a child’s true underlying ability rather than just counting their correct answers.