Schools / Eton College
Eton College
- Independent school
- Boys
- Boarding
- Ages 12–19
- Founded 1440
- 1,348 pupils
Eton College is an independent boarding school for boys in Windsor, Berkshire. Founded in 1440 by Henry VI, it is the best-known of England's boarding schools. Its main point of entry is Year 9 (13+), but places are decided at 11+: boys register by 31 August of Year 5 and sit the ISEB Common Pre-Tests in Year 6, leading to a conditional place confirmed in Year 8 by the King's Scholarship, Common Entrance or the Eton Entrance examination.
RegionSouth East
DfE URN110158
The exam
Athena holds admission-route records for Eton College. They are shown by entry cycle below; where the provider changes between cycles, each cycle keeps its own recorded exam.
Registration deadline: register by 31 August of Year 5. Registration for these schools closes well before the entrance tests — check the school's own admissions page for the exact form and dates.
2027 entry
Set by ISEB (tests commissioned from GL Assessment)
Confirmation: Confirmed by Common Entrance
Register by: 31 August of Year 5
13+ entry - Stage 1 (the 11+ pre-test stage, in Year 6): candidates for Eton sit the ISEB Common Pre-Tests in October/November of Year 6 (registration closes 31 August of Year 5), with a Head's report; shortlisted boys attend an interview and an online predictive test at Eton in spring Year 6, leading to a Conditional Place confirmed in Year 8. See the school's Independent School 13+ Entry route for the full pathway.
9489 published practice questions tagged for this exam
Route record: verified · Athena independents completion research 2026-10-28
Set by ISEB Common Entrance / school scholarship papers
Confirmation: Confirmed by Common Entrance
Register by: 31 August of Year 5
13+ places are decided at 11+: ISEB Common Pre-Tests in Year 6 (register by 31 August of Year 5) lead to a Conditional Place, confirmed in Year 8 by passing the King's Scholarship, Common Entrance or the Eton Entrance examination. The King's Scholarship (April, Year 8) is also an entry route for boys who were never registered.
Route record: verified · Athena independents completion research 2026-10-28
2028 entry
Set by ISEB (tests commissioned from GL Assessment)
Confirmation: Confirmed by Common Entrance
Register by: 31 August of Year 5
13+ entry - Stage 1 (the 11+ pre-test stage, in Year 6): candidates for Eton sit the ISEB Common Pre-Tests in October/November of Year 6 (registration closes 31 August of Year 5), with a Head's report; shortlisted boys attend an interview and an online predictive test at Eton in spring Year 6, leading to a Conditional Place confirmed in Year 8. See the school's Independent School 13+ Entry route for the full pathway.
9489 published practice questions tagged for this exam
Route record: verified · Athena independents completion research 2026-10-28
Set by ISEB Common Entrance / school scholarship papers
Confirmation: Confirmed by Common Entrance
Register by: 31 August of Year 5
13+ places are decided at 11+: ISEB Common Pre-Tests in Year 6 (register by 31 August of Year 5) lead to a Conditional Place, confirmed in Year 8 by passing the King's Scholarship, Common Entrance or the Eton Entrance examination. The King's Scholarship (April, Year 8) is also an entry route for boys who were never registered.
Route record: verified · Athena independents completion research 2026-10-28
Key dates & preparation
2028 entry
Test: Stage A pre-assessment during Year 6 (some schools assess in Year 7); confirmation — Common Entrance or the school’s own process — in May/June of Year 8 (see the route description for this school’s exact model)
Results: Conditional offers follow the Stage A assessment, typically by the spring of Year 6
Offers: Places are confirmed in Year 8 once the school’s confirmation condition is met (see the route description)
When to start preparing: Start preparing in the spring term of Year 5 (the standing rule: about 18 months before the test).
General guidance: this follows the rule of thumb of starting about 18 months before the test. It is not the school's own published advice.
Source: official admissions information · checked 2026-10-28
2027 entry
Test: Stage A pre-assessment during Year 6 (some schools assess in Year 7); confirmation — Common Entrance or the school’s own process — in May/June of Year 8 (see the route description for this school’s exact model)
Results: Conditional offers follow the Stage A assessment, typically by the spring of Year 6
Offers: Places are confirmed in Year 8 once the school’s confirmation condition is met (see the route description)
When to start preparing: Start preparing in the spring term of Year 5 (the standing rule: about 18 months before the test).
General guidance: this follows the rule of thumb of starting about 18 months before the test. It is not the school's own published advice.
Source: official admissions information · checked 2026-10-28
Admissions rules
No catchment — open competition
There is no catchment area. Entry at 13+ is governed by the school’s own pre-assessment and confirmation process (see the route description); registration deadlines fall early — typically during Year 5 or Year 6 — and places at this level are heavily oversubscribed.
Read the school's admissions policy
Results & destinations
2025 results
GCSE: 61.9% of grades at grade 9; 85.0% at grades 9–8; 94.0% at grades 9–7
School-published
A level: Average point score per A level entry 51.01 (average grade A); 63.8% of A level students achieved AAB or higher
DfE performance tables
Source: official source · checked 2026-10-28
2024 results
A level: Average point score per A level entry 50.57 (average grade A)
DfE performance tables
Source: official source · checked 2026-10-28
Scholarships & bursaries
Schemes recorded from the school's own published information. A scholarship is a merit award; a bursary is means-tested. Values are shown exactly as the school states them — where a scheme is honorary, its stated value says so.
13+ entry
King's Scholarship
ScholarshipAcademic
What is assessed: Compulsory papers: English A and B, Maths A, Science (Theory + Data) and General I, plus the best three optional papers. Around 14 scholarships a year. A satisfactory performance confirms a conditional place; a weak one can trigger a Common Entrance requirement instead.
When: Late April of Year 8
What it's worth: Value not stated on the school's published pages
How to apply: Open application — including boys who were never registered for a conditional place (a genuine late entry route; an unsuccessful unregistered candidate receives no place)
Official scholarship information
Checked 2026-10-28
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