Seeing our pupils flourish in the next stage of their lives brings us great joy. Our dedicated Higher Education and Careers team provides one-to-one guidance for each pupil, helping him or her find the right path beyond MCS.

Whilst there is no such thing as a typical year group, invariably we see a high proportion of each cohort heading to Oxbridge and other elite universities in the UK and overseas. All specialist applications are catered for too, whether that be to pursue Fashion at Central St Martins, Music at the Guildhall, or Engineering at the Dyson Institute.

A Higher Education Evening in February of the Lower Sixth year (Y12) sets out the many choices available to both pupils and parents. Amidst individual interviews and the allocation of a subject mentor per application, pupils are advised on form-filling and personal statement writing before test preparation begins in earnest. Interview preparation, gap year advice, an annual careers fair, work experience and CV surgery sessions ensure that our support is thorough and comprehensive.

Potential medics and engineers are able to develop and fulfil their ambitions following specialist programmes, including seminars, lectures, workshops and interviews, which begin during the second term of the Lower Sixth. On average, around 15% of each year group goes on to study Medicine, Dentistry or Veterinary Science at University.

MCS is one of the top schools in the country for securing places at the UK’s top universities, with just under a third of each year group head to Oxford or Cambridge.

The most popular destinations for MCS pupils are:

  • Oxford
  • Cambridge
  • Durham
  • Bristol
  • Exeter
  • UCL
  • Warwick
  • Imperial
  • Edinburgh
  • St Andrews

Overseas destinations for study include Harvard, Columbia, NYU, Sciences Po and Maastricht.

Peter Macdonald, Magdalen College School Director of Higher Education, advises pupil on university entrance.

For the most recent list of destinations, please click here.

Life-long connection to MCS

We believe that the relationship between our former pupils and the School is a life-long one. We encourage them to continue that connection through providing careers workshops, mentoring and work experience opportunities for current pupils.