Before you apply
What happens in the interview
Admission is by interview. In under 25 minutes the academic team learns the student's interests, timeline and current level, and recommends the programme and the direction for the project. There is no fee to attend.
What the interview is for
The interview is where the programme starts to take shape. The academic team hears what the student has read, built or wondered about, where they are in the application timeline, and how much time they have each week, and from that recommends a programme and a direction for the work.
Accepted students receive the programme, the schedule and the fee in writing, and are matched with a mentor whose research fits their question. The programme is then written for the student before the first session.
What we cover
The interview, under 25 minutes
What the student has actually done
What they have read, built or wondered about, and where the interest came from. This sets the direction of the project and the kind of researcher we match them with.
Where they are in the application timeline
Year group, exam schedule, and what else is competing for their time. A programme that fits a Year 12 student in October is the wrong programme for a Year 13 student in November.
What we would recommend, and why
We name a programme, explain the reasoning, and say what we would expect the student to produce by the end of it.
After the interview
The decision, and your questions
Acceptance is decided after the interview. Accepted students are matched with a mentor whose field fits their question, and the programme is scheduled from there. Time commitment per week, how the work is supervised, what happens if a match is wrong, and the fee are all covered before anything is agreed.
What you leave with
- A specific programme recommendation, with the reasoning behind it.
- The schedule and expected weekly time commitment.
- The fee, in writing, before any payment is requested.
- A clear description of what the student would produce by the end.
When we will tell you not to enrol
There are a few situations where a research programme is the wrong purchase, and we would rather name them here than discover them in the interview:
- The student is mid-way through exams with no realistic weekly capacity. The work suffers and so does the schoolwork.
- The student already has substantial unfinished work. Finishing and writing that up is usually worth more than starting something new.
- The interest is not the student's. Projects driven by a parent rather than the student tend not to survive week four, and they read as inauthentic in an application.
- What the student actually needs is writing or subject support rather than research supervision. Sometimes that is us, and sometimes it is a tutor.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a fee for the interview?
No. There is no fee for the interview. Enrolment is a separate decision, made once you have the programme, the schedule and the fee in writing.
How long does it take?
Under 25 minutes. It is a single conversation with the academic team, where we work out whether a supervised project is the right thing at all and which programme we would recommend. The decision on acceptance follows the interview, and accepted students are then matched with a mentor in their field before the programme begins.
Who attends the interview?
The student attends, and parents are welcome to join. It is a video call with the academic team.
What if the timing is not right for the student?
We say so in the interview and explain why, most often because exams or unfinished work should come first, and suggest when to return. The cases are set out above.
Does the student need to have an idea already?
No. Arriving without a fixed idea is common and is often better, because a question chosen in the first week with a mentor tends to be more workable than one settled on alone. What helps is being able to talk about what has interested you.
Do I need to prepare anything?
Nothing formal. If the student has written work, a reading list, or a draft question, it is useful but not required. Coming with questions about how the mentorship actually runs week to week is more valuable than preparing a pitch.
Request an interview
The form asks about the student's year group, subject interest, and what they have worked on so far. It takes a few minutes, and we use it to make the interview useful rather than spending the first fifteen minutes on background.