​St Swithun’s students celebrate UCAS success

Upper sixth students at St Swithun’s, Winchester are celebrating their success in gaining places at university in a year of unprecedented disruption and uncertainty around A level studies.

The 2020 leavers are going on to study a broad range of courses which include sustainable development, architecture and anthropology, biochemistry, computer science, neuroscience, modern and medieval languages, law and medicine.

Alongside consolidation of their A level studies during the summer term, U6 students undertook a new initiative, the St Swithun’s diploma, based around the concept of gaining knowledge and skills as well as helping others. They built their own combination of topics, choosing from courses directed by teaching staff, external mass open online courses (MOOCS) and self-directed investigation, research and learning. The range of components included: the study of accounting and public speaking; learning and teaching languages; researching opioids; app development; starting a small business; tutoring younger children and promoting wellbeing. There was also an exploration of pandemic scientific methodology, an essay on the geography of COVID-19 and creation of a lockdown record for the school community.

Headmistress Jane Gandee said ‘This year’s U6 displayed considerable resilience and maturity in the face of unprecedented disruption to their last term in school and to the examinations which historically are used to access the next stage of their education and set them on their career. They should rightly be proud of what they have achieved over the last year and throughout their school careers. As well as applying themselves academically, they fully embraced the opportunities available to them at St Swithun’s and were a positive force across the school community. I am delighted with their achievements’.