Throughout their educational journey, students rely on their mentors and our university advisers as primary resources for nurturing self-reflection, which allows them to make intuitive and confident choices at key times during their school life.
Applying to university can be a challenging but also a hugely exciting period in our Sixth Formers’ journey. Our robust university preparation programme is integrated into the wholistic education offered by Akademeia. Throughout their time at the school, AHS students develop a multifaceted portfolio of activities, which along with their academic pursuits, inform their future university choices.
Developing a balanced university list means organizing regular higher education and career events for the students, including conferences with admission teams, current students, and alumni from universities across the world.
Our University and Professional Guidance Centre has nine dedicated members of staff to support our students in refining their choices from the wide range of options available to them. The Centre provides one-on-one partnerships that ensure targeted agendas and personalized insight from faculty members who know students both in and outside the classroom, providing familiar guidance on each step of the higher education application process.
We believe that the best outcomes are reflected in not only the best university placements but also in the development of crucial skills that will help our students flourish, whatever the future may hold. Students can feel confident that their high school education not only prepares them for the unexpected, but that it never leaves them.
While alumni can rely on AHS for future internship and teaching opportunities, they can confidently aspire to realize what dreams may come through the varied skill set that they develop from our interdisciplinary approach. Leadership skills, for example, can come from unexpected places like participation in the school musical; video editing skills can come from the Collaborative Art Project.
Our tight-knit faculty ensures that our University and Professional Guidance Centre is kept up-to-date with these burgeoning skills and broadening horizons, all of which are compiled for the application process.
Our University and Professional Guidance Centre Team
Our Higher Education and Careers Centre team has a broad-ranging and far-reaching expertise in global university destinations. From the US and Canada, through Great Britain to Europe, our advisors have up-to-date knowledge and understanding of the ever-changing higher education landscape. Our team regularly attends university admissions panels and works closely with university admissions offices to help Akademeia students find the most suitable courses and guide them through the complex university application processes. The specialized profiles of our University Advisors offer unique expertise and tailored advice on how to best prepare for university courses. Further, with over a third of our faculty holding PhDs, our teachers are uniquely positioned to access an extensive international scholarly network that provides exclusive insight and connection to the global academic world.
Our University and Professional Guidance Centre consists of 9 expert advisors:
| Dr Karolina Watras | Head of Centre |
|---|---|
| Dr Mark Baynes | University Advisor for UK: STEM |
| Ms Maria Głowacka | Personal Development Scheme Coordinator (Work Placements and Internships) |
| Mr Liam Higgins | Senior University Advisor for UK and EU |
| Ms Aleksandra Ladzińska | University Advisor for Law and Social Sciences in UK and EU |
| Dr Vladislava Reznyk | University Advisor for EU and Global Destinations |
| Ms Julia Seeholzer | University Advisor for US and Canada |
| Ms Mara Steven | Senior University Advisor for US and Canada |
| Ms Aleksandra Wittchen | University Advisor for Arts & Humanities in UK |
| Ms Kathryn Zazenski | University Advisor for US |
University Preparation Programme
Year 11
Throughout the year students attend a series of professional guidance events and work closely with their mentors on choosing their A Levels and mapping out future pathways and opportunities for further development.
Year 12
Adult aspirations begin here. Working together with the Head of the University and Professional Guidance Centre and Director of Co-curricular, students discuss their university preparation trajectory and prepare through further academic development and personal development opportunities, including additional academic courses and internships. One-on-one partnerships between students and university advisors begin, and together they build student applications. Students planning to apply to universities in the US enrolled in the American programme, including college classes and SAT preparation classes. Students preparing for Law, Medicine, and selected Oxbridge courses start University Entrance Exam classes.
Year 13
Much of year 13 revolves around university applications and planning for the future. Oxbridge, Law and Medicine candidates continue with their University Entrance Exam preparation and practice interviews are offered. Students receive intense support in navigating the university application deadlines and their studies from both their mentors and the Higher Education Centre. Guidance is offered in the GAP year and further internships planning.
All years
In-person and online talks with representatives from American, British, and European Universities are held throughout the year to support our students in making well-informed decisions from the many choices available to them. The Higher Education and Career Centre also organizes a number of networking events in collaboration with Akademeia Alumni and Akademeia Parent Association, most notably, our annual Insiders’ Stories in the Autumn term, in which students get to meet recent graduates, studying at universities around the world; and Spring Term’s Careers Day, which introduces students to the world of work and professional development. Students are presented with the latest opportunities such as internships, competitions and extra-curricular projects in the weekly assemblies and newsletter.
Every year, in collaboration with Akademeia parents as well as leading research organisations and businesses, the school organizes internships across key sectors and areas of interest including medicine, engineering, finance, law, and design.
