Eton College is the most famous school in the world. Situated in Eton, Berkshire — across the river from Windsor Castle — it is an all-boys boarding school of extraordinary prestige, producing prime ministers, writers, scientists and figures of global influence. Entry is at 13+ via a rigorous multi-stage process that begins when boys are still in Year 5. For families who have Eton as a goal, the pathway starts earlier than most people realise.
About Eton College
Eton educates around 1,300 boys, all of whom board full-time across 25 houses. The school occupies a historic campus in the centre of Eton and provides an education of remarkable breadth: academic, artistic, athletic, creative and social. Academic results are exceptional — Eton consistently sends large numbers of boys to Oxford, Cambridge and the world's top universities — but the school is equally celebrated for the confidence, independence and breadth of character it develops in its pupils.
The cost of Eton is among the highest of any UK school, but it has a substantial bursary programme (the Scholarship and Enhanced Bursaries) that supports boys from families who could not otherwise afford the fees.
The entry process
Eton's entry process is more complex than most boarding schools and begins very early:
- Registration in Year 5 — families must register their son with Eton no later than when the boy is 10½ years old (typically early in Year 5). Eton closes registration by a fixed date and does not accept late applications.
- ISEB Pre-Test in Year 6 — registered boys sit the ISEB Common Pre-Test, an adaptive online assessment covering English, Mathematics, verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning. Boys sit the test at their prep school. Eton uses the results to shortlist candidates for the next stage.
- Eton's own assessment and interview in Year 6 — shortlisted boys come to Eton for a half-day or full-day assessment that includes academic papers, interviews with housemaster candidates and other activities. The school is assessing character, curiosity and overall potential as well as academic achievement.
- Conditional offer at Year 6 — boys who are successful receive a conditional place at Eton, subject to satisfactory performance in Common Entrance at the end of Year 8.
- Common Entrance at Year 8 — boys sit CE papers in all major subjects (English, Mathematics, Sciences, Languages, Humanities) in May or June of Year 8. The pass mark for conditional offers at Eton is typically around 70%.
King's Scholarship
Eton offers 14 King's Scholarships each year — the most prestigious school scholarships in the UK. Scholars sit separate, much more demanding papers in Year 8 alongside CE, and the assessment takes place at Eton itself. Scholars receive a fee reduction and wear the distinctive blue gown. The King's Scholarship papers test academic ability at the highest level and require preparation well beyond CE standard — particularly in Mathematics and English.
Common Entrance subjects
CE for Eton covers: English (two papers), Mathematics (two papers), Science, French, History, Geography, Religious Studies, and typically Latin or Classical Greek. The breadth of CE is a significant undertaking across all of Years 7 and 8. Boys need specialist teaching in all CE subjects — most provided by the prep school, supplemented by tutors where subjects need strengthening.
When to start preparation
Preparation for Eton should be thought of in three phases:
- Year 4–5 (Pre-Test preparation): build strong foundations in English and Mathematics. Begin to develop reasoning skills. Read widely. This is the foundation phase, which should be steady rather than intensive.
- Year 5–6 (ISEB Pre-Test and own assessment): structured preparation for the ISEB Pre-Test across all four components. Interview preparation and preparation for Eton's own assessment activities.
- Year 7–8 (CE preparation): systematic subject-by-subject CE preparation across all the CE subjects. A specialist tutor for Mathematics, English and languages in Year 8 is common.
What Eton is looking for
Beyond the examination performance, Eton looks for boys of character: curious, resilient, socially confident and capable of flourishing in a boarding community. The housemaster interviews in Year 6 are a meaningful assessment of personality and potential. Boys who are intellectually alive, broadly engaged with the world and genuinely likeable are the natural Eton candidates — not simply those with the best exam scores.
Finding a tutor for Eton preparation
Eton preparation requires tutors across multiple phases and subjects. For the Pre-Test and Year 6 assessment, a specialist with ISEB experience and interview coaching is valuable. For CE in Years 7 and 8, subject-specialist tutors in Mathematics, English, Sciences and languages are all potentially relevant depending on the boy's strengths and gaps.
Search for tutors with Common Entrance and boarding school preparation experience on the parent portal.