Hartsdown has a full range of abilities with students getting top grades and going on to Russell Group Universities. It is vital that we meet the needs of all our students and that our most able students get the results they need.

The Brilliant Club
We work with the Brilliant Club to deliver the Scholars Programme which provides pupils our students with the opportunity to work with a PhD researcher to experience university-style learning. It helps them to develop the skills, knowledge and confidence to secure a place at a highly-selective university.
The programme is structured around seven tutorials, complemented by two trips to highly-selective universities. We select twelve students who are then taught in two smaller groups of six. Students work towards completing a challenging final assignment, which is marked and moderated using university grades.

Oxford University Partnership
We work in partnership with St Hugh’s College Oxford. Through this partnership:
- All year 7s have a visit to Oxford University
- Selected students have access to intense coaching including a 2 week summer scheme and a week coaching at Easter. This prepares them for GCSES and for an application to Oxford
- We have a recruitment partner to support our students in applying to Oxford
Excellence Days
We work with Canterbury and Kent University and Dane Court Grammar school to offer students coaching and experiences to ensure they gain the very top grades.