Deep Teaching
Tool

Open-day question sheet

Ten questions that ask a school for numbers and examples, on one page with room for your notes. Print it and take it with you.

Both open your browser's print window; choose "Save as PDF" there. One A4 page.

Open-day questions: senior independent

School: Date:Spoke to:
  1. Where did last year's leavers go, and how many to each university or course?
    Ask for the full list with numbers.
  2. How many applied last year for the places at this entry point?
    Schools hold this; not all publish it.
  3. What does the assessment involve, and what are you looking for at interview?
    Ask what preparation they expect.
  4. What were the fees in each of the last three years, and what is not included?
    Lunch, trips, exam fees, devices.
  5. How many pupils hold a bursary, and how is one applied for?
    Ask for the deadline; it is often early.
  6. How are pupils grouped, and how much homework is set in the first year?
    Ask a pupil guide as well.
  7. How do you look after a pupil under pressure, and who notices first?
    Ask for a recent example.
  8. What support is there for pupils with additional needs, and is it charged for?
    Ask what it costs per term.
  9. How many pupils leave after GCSE, and why?
    And how many join for sixth form.
  10. How many teachers left last year, and how long has the head been here?
    And is the head staying?
Ask for numbers and examples. An open day is not an application: check how and when to register. DT Deep Teaching · deepteaching.ai
How these questions were chosen
  • Each question asks for something a school can count, show or point to, so that answers can be compared between schools.
  • The questions are the same for every school of the same type. They do not rank schools and there are no right answers.
  • The hints in grey suggest what to listen for. They are prompts, not marking criteria.

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