A Company Limited by Guarantee: Company No. 3636789 Registered Charity No. 17!!

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Chairman o" #rustees: $eith %udge& 'eadmaster %eda(es )*hoo(
+ire*tor: Andre, %oggis
)*ho(ars- Co.ordinator: #ony La,ren*e
Administrator: +r /onathan 0o(stenho(me
Administrator o" the #ea*hers- 0or1 23perien*e )*heme: 4eter de 5oi(
From the Director: Andrew Boggis
SCHOLARSHIPS TO SCHOOLS IN THE UNITED KINGDOM 2014 2015
Informaton for A!!"#ant$%
The purpose of this paper is to describe the arrangements for the scholarships offered in the
United Kingdom through HMC Headmasters! and Headmistresses! Conference" #ro$ects in
Central and %astern %urope& 'ou will find further details of the nature and wor( of HMC #ro$ects
at www&hmc&org&u()pro$ects &
T&' S#&oo"$
The schools which award HMC scholarships are located throughout the United Kingdom& These
are of *arious t+pes& ,ome are schools mainl+ for boarding pupils bo+s and girls who li*e at the
school during the school terms"& -ther schools ha*e some boarders but consist mainl+ of da+
pupils& ,cholarship students from Central and %astern %urope ta(e up boarding places in their
schools&
Man+ of the schools are coeducational but some ta(e onl+ girls and others ta(e onl+ bo+s& .e
tr+ to fit students into the most suitable schools ta(ing account of particular talents but/ once the
school has accepted the student proposed/ no changes can be made& All the schools within the
scheme ha*e been selected because the+ are regarded as entirel+ suitable and because the+ are
seen to be li(el+ to offer a *er+ *aluable e0perience to the students who are their guests& There
are also li(el+ to be a few scholarships offered to British 1nternational ,chools in ,wit2erland and
Thailand&
T&' HMC Pro('#t$ S#&o"ar$&!
The scholarship awarded b+ +our school co*ers the cost of +our tuition and also +our
accommodation and food and other basic re3uirements& 'ou will be entitled to all the benefits of
the UK 4ational Health ,er*ice&
O!!ort)nt*+ C&a""'n,'+ Commtm'nt
'ou ha*e alread+ been enterprising in as(ing for details of the HMC ,cholarships& 1magine now
that +ou win a scholarship5 .hat would it reall+ in*ol*e6 .ill the benefits match all the
uncertaint+ and uphea*al6 ,hould 1 accept the scholarship6
1ne*itabl+/ some features of British schools will be *er+ different from +our school& For the +ear to
be a success *o) -"" n''. to /' a.a!ta/"' and willing to accept +our school7s arrangements&
The most important differences are as follows:8
9& 'ou will be li*ing awa+ from home& Man+ of +ou will ha*e been on student outings or
camps awa+ from home/ but with +our friends and in the (nowledge that life will soon be
returning to normal& Coming to the UK/ and realising that +ou will not be seeing +our
parents for two to four months/ +ou ma+ well feel homesic(& The food will be different5
Man+ students do miss their homes at first but 3uite 3uic(l+ the+ ma(e friends and en$o+
ha*ing the compan+ of other +oung people for much of the time& How do +ou thin( that
*o) would cope6
:& -nce +ou arri*e at the school +ou will be in the care of the school staff at all times when
the school is in session& ,tudents li*e in boarding houses& The houses are usuall+ for
bo+s onl+ or for girls onl+& 1n +our house there will probabl+ be about thirt+ to fort+ other
students/ perhaps aged 9; to 9</ perhaps all si0th formers& Most students will share a
room with another student and usuall+ this will be the place where the+ not onl+ sleep but
do their wor( and (eep their personal belongings/ clothes/ boo(s and other items& Most
schools will e0pect their boarders to ta(e their share in certain communal responsibilities
within their houses& For +oung people who ha*e alwa+s li*ed at home it ta(es some time
to become accustomed to this situation& 1f +ou ha*e no brothers and sisters +ou are used
to ma(ing +our own noise at home but not to ha*ing to put up with the noise created b+
others = let alone fort+ others5
;& 1n charge of +our house/ there will be a House #arent Housemaster or Housemistress"/
assisted b+ a House Tutor and a House Matron& 'ou will find that +our House #arent will
attach great importance to the rules established for the House and will as( that +ou
respect and obe+ them& A t+pical rule would be that students will be e0pected to be in
their own rooms b+ a particular time at night and will be re3uired to be 3uiet so that
others ma+ sleep& Another rule will be that students are not allowed to smo(e& ,tudents
in boarding schools are not normall+ permitted to see( or obtain paid emplo+ment outside
school&
At home it is not usuall+ necessar+ to ma(e rules of this sort and the+ ma+ well be more
detailed and prescripti*e than in +our present school& -ur e0perience is that these rules
do not usuall+ create difficulties for students/ but we must emphasise that students need
to be willing to accept them& The+ are made to enable e*er+one to fit in together and to
ma(e it as eas+ as possible to ensure that all the students are safe and happ+& ,chools
do not/ of course/ allow the use of drugs&
1f +ou do not thin( +ou could accept such rules/ then the +ear would not be right for +ou/
as such tensions can onl+ cause unhappiness for +ou and for the school&
>& 1n most schools students wear a uniform during teaching hours and for special occasions&
T+picall+ this might be a gre+ suit for bo+s or a gre+ sweater and s(irt for girls but schools
will send full information about this to those who are selected for scholarships and there
is no need for parents to spend much mone+ on these items before +our departure&

?& An important difference is that +ou will specialise in far fewer academic sub$ects& This
applies to all the present e0amination s+stems in the UK = A @e*els/ the 1B 1nternational
Baccalaureate"/ ,cottish Highers and Ad*anced Highers and the Cambridge #re8
Uni*ersit+ %0amination& ,tudents usuall+ ta(e onl+ four or perhaps fi*e main sub$ects
from a range of fifteen to twent+ different possibilities"/ plus a subsidiar+ sub$ect and)or a
general studies course& 0or '1am!"'/ a student might ta(e Mathematics/ #h+sics/
Biolog+ and Chemistr+ as the main sub$ects/ with Aerman as a subsidiar+ sub$ect&
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Another combination might be Aerman/ Histor+/ French and %conomics as the main
sub$ects/ with 1nformation Technolog+ as a subsidiar+ sub$ect&
1n other words/ HMC #ro$ects scholars will stud+ a smaller number of sub$ects/ in greater
depth/ than +ou would ha*e done at home& The conse3uence is that +ou will thin( more
deepl+ about the sub$ect/ rather than $ust stud+ to absorb information& -f fundamental
importance is the fact that +ou will be spea(ing/ listening/ reading and writing in %nglish
all the time/ so that +our command of %nglish will de*elop enormousl+ during +our time in
the UK& 'our new school will want to (now which sub$ects +ou would li(e to stud+ and
will suppl+ full information to that end& .e are happ+ to ad*ise as necessar+&
B& .hereas man+ %uropean schools aim to pro*ide onl+ teaching in the academic sub$ects/
British boarding schools offer a wide range of other acti*ities through which students can
de*elop their talents and ac3uire new s(ills& 'ou can e0pect high standards and
e0cellent facilities in Music/ Drama and ,port& 1t is cruciall+ important that +ou e0plore
these opportunities for personal recreation and de*elopment& 1t is the easiest and
3uic(est wa+ of ma(ing friends with fellow students& Cemember too that +ou will be in
school during wee(ends/ when there will be few classes to attend and man+ hours to fill&
,tudents who ,2' most to their boarding communities and to the sporting and cultural
life of their schools ,an most from all the opportunities that their schools offer them&
1n other words/ there will be much more to life than simpl+ wor(ing hard = although that is
ob*iousl+ important5 'ou should also be able to en$o+ +oursel*es and be happ+ in the
compan+ around +ou& That wa+/ +ou will ta(e home lasting friendships and an enduring
reminder of +our time in Britain&
D& T&' S#&o"ar$&! $ for on' *'ar on"*& 'ou should ha*e no e0pectation that +ou will be
able to sta+ for a second +ear& The scholarship does not carr+ with it the opportunit+ to
stud+ at a British uni*ersit+& 'ou should find out from local uni*ersities and from +our own
current school which e0aminations or courses of stud+ if an+" will be necessar+ if +ou
are to resume studies at home without disad*antage when +ou return& 1n general this
has not been a problem for students in the past but a few students ha*e needed an e0tra
+ear on their return to their own schools&
3'for' a!!"*n,+ an. #'rtan"* /'for' a##'!tn,+ ma4' $)r' t&at *o) &a2' r'$'ar#&'. t&$
f)""*+ -t& an '*' to *o)r o-n a#a.'m# an. #ar''r a$!raton$% 53'ar n mn. t&at t&'$'
m,&t #&an,' aft'r a *'ar n t&' UK67
8o)rn'* to t&' UK an. to *o)r S#&oo"
Unless +our school +ear starts earlier/ +ou will tra*el to the UK on Frida+ :E
th
August :F9>& 'ou
will be met at the airport and ta(en to Cambridge for three da+s for a short -rientation Course&
.e ma(e special arrangements for those whose school terms start before then to tra*el to
Cambridge from their schools&
The -rientation course is the one occasion in the +ear when all the students on the scheme
gather in one place together with the members of the .or(ing Aroup& Mr Ton+ @awrence/ our
,cholars7 Co8ordinator/ will e0plain his (e+ role in helping students during their time in Britain& .e
e0plain also the wa+s in which the schools function and +ou will ha*e the opportunit+ to as( +our
own 3uestions&
At the end of the course careful arrangements are made for +ou to tra*el on to +our school& 'ou
will be full+ informed as to how to ma(e the $ourne+ and who will meet +ou on arri*al&
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T&' S&a!' of t&' S#&oo" 9'ar
The school +ear in Britain is usuall+ di*ided into three terms/ with holida+s at Christmas/ %aster
and in the summer& At the end of the first two terms the school will ensure that +ou (now the
arrangements for tra*elling home and returning to Britain after the Christmas and %aster holida+s&
'ou will not remain in Britain during these holida+s unless +our school agrees to this and +our
parents ha*e also gi*en permission/ made the necessar+ arrangements and communicated these
to the ,chool&
1n addition/ most schools close for a half8term brea( in the middle of the term& The length of this
brea( will *ar+ from school to school = from a few da+s to a ma0imum of two wee(s 8 and at
these times a GContact #erson7 appointed b+ the school will assume responsibilit+ for ma(ing
suitable arrangements for +ou during the half8term brea(& This member of staff will contact +our
parents to ensure that the+ agree with these half8term arrangements& #arents are occasionall+
able to nominate famil+ friends or relati*es to act as guardians but this is not usuall+ feasible&"
A##'!tn, a S#&o"ar$&! $ a Commtm'nt
.e li(e to thin( that we are good at selecting the right scholars5 :' .o o)r /'$t to #&oo$'
$t).'nt$ -&o+ n a..ton to /'n, 2'r* ,oo. n t&'r a#a.'m# $t).'$+ ar' $o#a/"'+
a.a!ta/"'+ nt'r'$t'. an. nt'r'$tn, an.+ a/o2' a""+ r'a.* to ,2' of t&'m$'"2'$ to t&'r
n'- #omm)nt'$%
But +ou will (now +oursel*es better than an+one else does& 1n that sense/ +ou are the most
important $udge of where +our best interests will lie&
1n this letter/ 1 ha*e tried to draw attention to some of the human realities in*ol*ed in an HMC
#ro$ects scholarship& A few students appl+ for the scholarship because the+ see it as a great
honour and a pri2e to be won/ but without reflecting on the personal challenges that will face
them& P"'a$' .on;t for,'t t&at *o)r a##'!tan#' of a $#&o"ar$&!+ -&#& ,2'$ *o) t&'
o!!ort)nt* of $!'n.n, a *'ar at a $#&oo" n t&' UK+ m'an$ t&at $om'on' '"$' $ not
,on, to &a2' t&at o!!ort)nt*% :&'n *o) arr2' n'1t A),)$t+ -' -"" '1!'#t+ an. *o)
$&o)". /' $)r'+ t&at *o) -"" &ono)r *o)r $#&o"ar$&! /* #om!"'tn, a f)"" *'ar of
a#a.'m# $t).'$ n *o)r n'- $#&oo"% 'ou owe it to +ourself/ but also to +our competitors/ to
be honest with +ourself& 'ou will be mo*ing out of +our own Gcomfort 2one7& 1f +ou (now that +ou
would find it personall+ *er+ difficult to ad$ust to all the differences that 1 ha*e mentioned/
including especiall+ that of li*ing awa+ from home/ then +ou should not proceed&
,ince the HMC ,cholarships started in 9EE: there ha*e been $ust on thirteen hundred scholars&
For the *ast ma$orit+ it has been a wonderfull+ positi*e/ fulfilling and en$o+able e0perience =
/'#a)$' t&'* &a2' 'm/ra#'. t&' o!!ort)nt'$ an. t&' #&a""'n,'$ -t& 'nt&)$a$m an.
#ommtm'nt&
1 hope that this paper has been helpful for +ou& #lease read it carefull+/ along with the
complementar+ document/ Information for the Parents of Applicants 2014 2015&


,eptember :F9;
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