Clifton College 13+ entry guide

Are you thinking about applying to Clifton College for 13+ entry? Find out everything you need to know about the admissions process and how to prepare for the entrance exam.

Key information for Clifton College

• School type: co-educational independent school (day and boarding)
• Location: Clifton, Bristol
• Admissions contact: 0117 315 7000
• 13+ exam: an online CAT4 assessment, or Common Entrance/Common Academic Scholarship for pupils joining from a Common Entrance–teaching prep school
• Financial assistance: means-tested bursaries, which can in exceptional circumstances cover up to 100% of fees
• Scholarships: academic, music and sport, with fee remissions typically ranging from 10–50% depending on category

Important dates for 2027 entry

Clifton College registers 13+ candidates on a rolling basis rather than setting a single fixed test date for everyone, so its timeline is more flexible than some other schools:

• Any time (rolling registration): register your child for entry, with a test date arranged individually once your application is in
• Typically January, Year 8: entrance examinations for most candidates
• Summer, Year 8: Common Entrance or Common Academic Scholarship examination, for pupils joining from other schools via that route
• Check the school's website to confirm your specific assessment date for 2027 entry

How to apply to Clifton College

Clifton College is selective. This means your child will need to complete an entrance assessment to be eligible for a place.

The process starts with discovering the College through a personal tour, video call, or Open Event, followed by online registration. Unlike schools with a single fixed exam day, Clifton registers candidates on a rolling basis and sets the entrance test date individually once your application has been received.

What will my child be tested on?

Students entering Year 9 from other schools typically sit Common Entrance or the Common Academic Scholarship examination (for academic scholarship candidates) in the summer before entry. For pupils not on that route, Clifton uses an online CAT4 assessment for Years 9–11 entry.

Which route applies to my child?

This isn't a choice you or Clifton make, it depends on your child's current prep school. Common Entrance is a standardised exam with its own syllabus, and only prep schools that teach towards it will enter their pupils for it. Many prep schools, particularly day schools or those that also send children to 11+ grammar schools, don't teach the Common Entrance syllabus at all, since their leavers are heading in a range of different directions.

If you're not sure which applies to your child, ask their current school directly. Prep schools that prepare pupils for Common Entrance will describe themselves as doing so, and their Year 6 or 7 staff will be able to confirm which route your child is on well ahead of the entrance process.

CAT4

The CAT4 is an online cognitive abilities test. It assesses four types of reasoning:

• Verbal reasoning
• Non-verbal reasoning
• Quantitative reasoning
• Spatial reasoning

Rather than testing subject knowledge, the CAT4 looks at how your child thinks and solves problems, giving the school a picture of their academic potential.

Common Entrance or Common Academic Scholarship

If your child's current prep school teaches towards Common Entrance, that exam result is what Clifton will use to assess them for their 13+ place, and the CAT4 won't usually be needed. Common Entrance, or the Common Academic Scholarship examination for academic scholarship candidates, is sat in the summer term before entry.

Taster day and interview

After registration, your child will be invited to visit Clifton College for an informal taster day and to spend time with their prospective year group, alongside a school reference.

How are places decided?

Places at Clifton are based on:

• your child's performance in the CAT4 (or Common Entrance/Common Academic Scholarship, where applicable)
• their taster day visit
• a reference from their current school

Once these steps are complete, a formal written offer letter is sent by the admissions team.

Financial information

Clifton College is a fee paying school. Take a look at the school's fees page for a full breakdown of fees for day and boarding pupils.

Financial assistance

When exploring independent schools for your child, scholarships and bursaries are worth considering. They can ease the pressure of school fees and open doors to opportunities that might otherwise feel out of reach.

Scholarships

Scholarships are awarded for a child's talent or achievement. At Clifton, academic scholarships typically carry a 10–50% fee remission, music scholarships 10–50% plus free music tuition, and there are also awards for sport. All scholarships except one reserved award are decided through separate assessments.

Visit Clifton College's website to see the scholarships available and how to apply.

For more information, read: Your guide to independent school scholarships.

Bursaries

Bursaries are means-tested awards (based on a family's financial situation) designed to make independent education more accessible. At Clifton, bursaries are awarded at the school's discretion and can, in exceptional circumstances, cover up to 100% of fees. The school also offers an HM Forces Bursary and sibling discounts.

Families provide financial information to qualify, and awards are reassessed each year. For many families, bursaries make an excellent education possible that might otherwise seem out of reach.

Visit Clifton College's website to find out what bursaries are available and how to apply.

For more information, read: Bursaries: a parents' guide.

Financial support for independent school fees is more available than most families realise.

This free guide is an honest look at how scholarships and bursaries work in practice: what they cover, how the timeline unfolds from Year 4 to Year 6 and how to approach admissions with confidence.

How can I help my child prepare for the test?

One of the hardest parts of exam preparation is knowing what to focus on, when, and how to make steady progress without it taking over family life.

A clear, structured plan helps your child feel less overwhelmed and more in control. It ensures they build skills in the right order, cover everything they need, and avoid last-minute cramming.

Atom's exam plan makes this easier. Enter your child's target schools and exam dates, and we'll create a personalised weekly plan tailored to the topics they'll be tested on. It shows them what to work on and when, adapts as they improve, and helps them build progress in a calm, manageable way — little and often.

That means less guesswork for you, less stress for them, and a clearer path all the way to exam day.

Build smart exam technique

As your child's knowledge grows, practice tests can help them feel more comfortable with the real exam format.

Atom's mock tests are exact replicas of real entrance exams. They're also unlimited — your child can take the same test repeatedly and see new questions each time. This helps them practise without repeating the same content.

Atom's mock tests are automatically marked. You'll see your child's standardised age score (SAS), where they're doing well, and what they should focus on next. You'll also learn how they compare to other children applying to the same school.

Encourage regular reading

Strong reading skills play a big role in preparation for entrance exams.

Encourage your child to read every day, even for just 10–15 minutes. The key is variety. Mix fiction and non-fiction, different genres, and a range of authors. This helps them become more confident in understanding tone, purpose, and meaning across different texts.

Over time, regular reading will:

• broaden their vocabulary
• improve comprehension and inference
• build confidence in tackling unseen texts

And just as importantly, it can help them enjoy reading — not just see it as exam preparation.

Celebrate progress, not just scores

When you're supporting your child through exam preparation, what really matters is knowing they're moving in the right direction — not just how they scored on a single test.

Atom's progress tracking gives you a clear, simple picture of how your child is doing in each topic and the direction they're moving in. You can see where they're on track, where they might need more practice, and spot progress as it happens.

That makes it easier to give meaningful encouragement, keep motivation steady, and focus on what matters most: consistent improvement, not just one-off results.