Personalised teaching only matters if it ends in a certificate that universities recognise. So we work backwards from the exam, covering the board, the specification, the entry deadline and the seat in the exam hall, and we tell you exactly who is responsible for each step.
Most families discover the administrative side of examinations far too late, usually in February, when entry deadlines have already passed. Here is the full sequence for a summer examination series, from the first conversation to results day.
Before any teaching begins we decide which qualification your child is working toward, which examination board's specification we will follow, and which examination series we are aiming for. This one decision shapes everything downstream.
LearnHigh & family, togetherSpecification content is mapped across the months available, with milestones and mock points built in. Your child knows what is being covered and when it must be finished.
LearnHighA registered centre is identified and confirmed for the subjects and board on the plan, including any centre that needs to deliver practical or coursework components.
Does LearnHigh identify and book the centre, does the family arrange it with our guidance, or do we hold partner-centre relationships in either market?
Entries are made through the centre before the board's deadline. Late entries are normally accepted for a period afterwards, but at a higher fee, so we work well ahead of the published date rather than up against it.
Who submits the entry, and are entry fees included in the monthly programme fee or charged separately? Typical cost per subject?
Your child sits mocks under timed conditions and we review the papers together, not just the score, but the pattern of marks lost. If access arrangements such as extra time apply, evidence needs to be with the centre by this point.
LearnHighTeaching shifts from covering content to examination technique: past papers, mark schemes, examiner reports and the specific question types your child loses marks on. The statement of entry arrives from the centre. Check every detail on it.
LearnHighAt the registered centre, under board conditions, with photo ID and their statement of entry. Sessions around the examination period are scheduled around the timetable, not against it.
Family & centreWe go through the grades with you and work out what comes next: progression to A Level, a university application, a review of marking where the result looks wrong, or a resit in the next series. The pathway does not end at the certificate.
LearnHigh & family, togetherLearnHigh teaches the programme. Examinations are sat at a registered examination centre approved by the board, the same arrangement used by every private candidate and by many international students. Here is how that works in each of our markets.
How do UK families find a centre: do we maintain a list, introduce families to partner centres, or handle the booking directly?
Which Swiss centres do we work with or recommend, and in which cantons? Do we have existing relationships, or does the family approach centres directly?
Not every subject is equally straightforward for a student outside a mainstream school. UK GCSE sciences carry a practical endorsement that has to be delivered and assessed by a centre. Several subjects at both GCSE and A Level include non-examined assessment (coursework) which also has to be supervised.
This is precisely why the board decision at Month 0 matters so much. International qualifications are often structured differently, with alternative-to-practical papers rather than an endorsement, which is why they are frequently the more practical route for students studying outside a school. We work this through subject by subject with you, before you commit to a pathway.
1. Is there a practical or coursework component? And if so, can the centre we are using actually deliver and assess it?
2. Is there an alternative paper? Some specifications offer a written alternative that removes the problem entirely.
3. Does the university route care? A few courses have specific requirements. We check before choosing, not after.
Which subjects with practical or coursework components does LearnHigh currently support, and are there any we cannot support for private candidates? This list needs to be explicit, as it is the most common source of a late, expensive surprise.
Every programme is aligned to a specific specification from the outset. We teach to the board's assessment objectives, mark schemes and examiner reports, not to a generic version of the subject.
Widely used in UK schools and by international centres, with a large International GCSE and International A Level suite.
The most widely recognised international route, with strong centre coverage across Europe including Switzerland.
Among the most common boards in UK schools, the usual choice for a student continuing alongside their school's specification.
If your child's school follows a board we do not teach to, tell us at the consultation. We will say so plainly rather than teach a near-enough specification.
At a registered examination centre approved by the board, in the UK or in Switzerland, depending on where you are. LearnHigh delivers the teaching and the academic programme; the centre delivers the examination itself.
Add the specifics: how centres are found in each market, and whether LearnHigh arranges this or the family does.
State plainly whether entry is handled by LearnHigh or by the family with our guidance, and name who is accountable for meeting the deadline.
Included or separate, plus a typical per-subject range and a note that centres add their own administration fee.
Access arrangements (extra time, a reader, rest breaks, a separate room) are applied for through the examination centre, and they require evidence of need together with a history of the support being used in practice. Because evidence takes time to assemble, this is raised early in the programme rather than close to the examination.
What support does LearnHigh give with the evidence and the application, and is there any additional cost?
A missed paper is normally re-entered for the next available series, and the academic plan is rebuilt around the new date. Where a result looks inconsistent with the mock evidence and the work we have seen, a review of marking can be requested through the centre within the board's deadline. We help you decide whether the case is worth making.
Yes. Retakes are entered in the same way as a first entry, and the programme is rebuilt around what the paper actually showed rather than repeating the same year of teaching. Plenty of our students come to us specifically for a resit.
Book a free 45-minute academic consultation to establish examination boards, map specifications, and build a milestone plan mapped backwards from the exam date.
No commitment required. Bring your subjects, board questions, and target timeline.