High-flying students have joined the Honours programme at Barrow Sixth Form College after achieving top grades in their GCSEs at school.
The 40 students are from schools including St Bernard’s, Dowdales, Walney, Furness Academy, and Chetwynde and started at the Rating Lane campus in September.
Honours students have the chance to specialise in their favourite A level subject, from across more than 20 offered, with additional mentoring from expert tutors who challenge the students to bring out the best in them academically.
Many will also complete a fourth A Level or the extended project qualification, which is equivalent to half an A level and enables students to pursue a research project related to their future ambitions.
Ella Drury, who completed her GCSEs at Furness Academy, is doing A levels in psychology, biology, chemistry and maths and is aiming for a career as a doctor or a surgeon.
“I enjoy college particularly psychology and biology as they are great subjects,” she said. “I am happy I got accepted onto the Honours programme, it is going to help me in the future and it will look good on applications. I want to study medicine and being an Honours student, you are encouraged to work hard and you are pushed a lot more.”
Noah Richards, who also joined sixth form from Furness Academy and is studying A levels in psychology, sociology, maths and media, said he was enjoying his college experience as an Honours student.
“I like the independence that college gives you especially with the timetable, it has worked out well for me,” he said. “Being accepted onto the Honours programme is a nice achievement to have. My career ambition is to work as a psychologist, criminologist or counsellor and the Honours programme will help me get there as it looks good on your CV and an extra A level brings more opportunities and opens more doors.”
Assistant Head of Sixth Form Helen Rastelli, who runs the Honours programme which is in partnership with Lancaster University, said it provides extra stretch, support and challenge for the most capable students.
“For Honours students, this is a chance to study beyond the course specification and choose a topic they really enjoy to look at in much more depth.
“Top universities are looking for skills beyond just academic, they want learners who have a genuine enthusiasm and love of their subject, self-drive to study and problem solve. These are the key skills the Honours programme helps to hone.”
Nicola Marsden, Head of UK Student Recruitment & Widening Participation at Lancaster University, said the university very much values the Honours programme partnership with Barrow Sixth Form.
“It’s been fantastic to see how well prepared students have been when joining us for their university studies, easing a lot of the usual worries students have and making that transition a much smoother one,” she said.
“We are passionate about widening participation and social mobility at Lancaster and helping students achieve their very best potential is something we thoroughly enjoy. Lancaster University is one of the top universities in the UK league tables and it’s exciting to see this top talent coming through the Honours programme so close to home.
“We’re proud to be part of this partnership and to be able to play a small part in ensuring the most able students in the Barrow area have the expert guidance they need to enable them to aim high, continue their academic studies and transform their future”.
Honours students are identified by their school in Year 10 and nominated for a place, with meetings taking place in Year 10 and Year 11. To be accepted onto the Honours programme, students need to achieve an average GCSE score of at least 7.0, which means mainly grades 7, 8 or 9 (legacy GCSEs at A or A* grades).
