ISEB Common Pre-Tests and Common Entrance Explained: 11+ and 13+

Independent school admissions come with their own vocabulary, and few terms baffle newcomers more than "Common Pre-Test" and "Common Entrance". A friend moving her son into the independent sector at 13 found the timeline especially confusing, because it started far earlier than she expected. Here is a plain explanation of how these tests fit together.

The Independent School Timeline Is Different

Independent (private) schools set their own admissions processes, and these often run on a different, earlier timeline than state school admissions. Many senior independent schools admit at 11+ (for entry into Year 7) or at 13+ (for entry into Year 9), and the assessment for these places can begin a year or two before the child actually starts. Understanding this early timeline is the single most useful thing, because families who discover it late can miss registration windows.

The ISEB Common Pre-Test

The ISEB Common Pre-Test is an assessment used by many independent senior schools as an early filter, particularly for 13+ entry. It is produced by the Independent Schools Examinations Board (ISEB) and is typically:

• Taken by children in Year 6 or Year 7, so well before they would start at the senior school
• Sat online, and usually covering areas such as English, maths, verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning
• Adaptive in style at times, and designed so a child sits it once and the result can be shared with several schools the family is applying to

Schools use the pre-test as an early indication, often followed by interviews and sometimes further assessment, before making offers that are conditional on later performance. The exact way each school uses it varies, so check with the specific schools.

Common Entrance

Common Entrance exams are the more traditional route into many independent senior schools, sat at 11+ or 13+, usually in the year of entry. They cover a range of subjects and are set to a common syllabus used across many schools, hence the name, though individual schools decide how they use the results. For 13+ entry, Common Entrance is commonly taken in Year 8, often after a child has already been offered a conditional place following an earlier pre-test. For 11+ entry, the assessment is taken in Year 6.

How They Fit Together for 13+

The two can work in sequence, which is what confuses parents. A common pattern for 13+ entry at some schools is:

• A child registers with a senior school well in advance
• They sit the ISEB Common Pre-Test in Year 6 or 7 as an early assessment
• Following interviews and the pre-test, they may receive a conditional offer
• They then sit Common Entrance in Year 8, with the place confirmed subject to performance

This is why families need to be thinking about 13+ senior school entry surprisingly early, sometimes while the child is still in a junior or prep school. Not all schools follow this pattern, so confirm each school's process.

What to Do If This Is New to You

• Contact the specific independent schools you are interested in and ask exactly how and when they assess for entry at your child's age
• Ask which tests they use, the pre-test, Common Entrance, or their own assessments, and the registration deadlines
• Find out how the tests, interviews and offers fit together, and what is conditional on what
• Note that prep schools often guide families through this, so ask your child's current school if relevant

Keeping the Early Deadlines in View

The biggest risk with independent admissions is missing an early registration deadline for a test that happens a year or more before entry. My School Agent can pull the registration windows and test dates from the schools' emails into a daily briefing and shared calendar, so those easy-to-miss early deadlines are flagged in good time. Because each independent school runs its own process and details change, always confirm the current arrangements directly with the schools you are considering.