Each subject has a Head of Department and parents may consult the Head of Department about a particular subject. Alternatively, they may consult the Headmaster.

The School is selective, trying to admit only those students who can benefit from the type of education offered. Entrance to the Sixth Form (Year 12) is not automatic. Students must have passed at least five GCSEs (with grades A, B or C) or Ordinary Levels and have shown themselves to be sufficiently mature and motivated to study and to be trusted to use the great amount of free time they have to study.

Examinations

GCSE

All students are prepared for the General Certificate of Secondary Education. This examination is taken at the end of Year Eleven, except by most students of Spanish and the advanced students of Mathematics (in the accelerated set) who take this examination at the end of Year Ten.

Runnymede uses the International GCSE of the University of Cambridge in all subjects except French and Latin, in which subjects the Midlands GCSE is used. They all have the same value for purposes of recognition in Spain, the UK and throughout the world.

In Year 10, most students take the Spanish examination, either the one in Spanish as a First Language or Spanish as a Second Language.

Good students take a total of 10 GCSEs before leaving Year Eleven. In order to enter Year Twelve (Lower Sixth) the School requires students to have passed at least 5 GCSEs, including English and Mathematics.

Subjects and Options

Years 7, 8 and 9

All students of Runnymede Senior School are given the opportunity (and are expected) to study the following subjects: English Language and Literature, Mathematics, Computers, Spanish (there are three simultaneous classes, the most advanced of which follows the syllabus of the Spanish Primaria, ESO, and Bachillerato), Universal History, Geography, Science, Latin, Art and Music. There are weekly classes of Physical education which can be supplemented by voluntary After-school sports: swimming, riding, tennis, basketball, volleyball, Brownies, etc. All students study French unless it is felt that they need extra classes of English as a second or foreign language. Spanish classes are setted from the beginning of Year 7: Maths classes are setted during the course of Year 7, whilst French classes are setted as from Year 8. Setting is not rigid and a student may move from one set to another.

Years 10 and 11

Up to this point a student may have studied as many as thirteen subjects, if "Science" is regarded as the Physics, Chemistry and Biology that it in fact is. Since it is neither feasible nor desirable that a student study so many subjects, students are required to make certain choices on moving from Year 9 to 10. Meetings with both parents and students are held during the third term at which the options available and the implications of opting for certain subjects are explained. Parents and students alike are encouraged to ask questions and invited to request private appointments if they so wish.

In Year 10, most students take GCSE Spanish, and those in the accelerated set in Mathematics take that subject too. In Year 11 they proceed to study Alternative Ordinary Level Maths. In Year 11, all students take the GCSE examinations which they have not already taken.

Years 12 and 13: The Sixth Form

Entry into the Sixth Form (Years 12 and 13) is not automatic. Traditionally the intellectually elite class, its members have passed at least 5 GCSEs, and with good grades (A or B) in the subjects they intend to study for the last two years of their school life. A student with a good mastery of English and whose education has not been interrupted in the last three or four years should have up to 11 GCSEs. A pass in English and Mathematics is essential, and a good grade in the subjects that the student intend to pursue in the Sixth Form. Students in the Sixth Form (Years 12 and 13) follow a two-year course of studies leading up to the Advanced Level examinations of the General Certificate of Education. The School uses the A Levels of the University of London in all subjects except Mathematics and Art, where the A Levels of the Midlands Boards are preferred. They all have the same value for purposes of validation in the UK, Spain and throughout the world.

Students are prepared for the following Advanced Level examinations of the General Certificate of Education: Maths, English, Geography, Art & Design, Biology, Economics, Ancient History, Latin, Chemistry, History, French, Physics, Spanish and Latin. Students normally study three A Levels: the choice of subjects will depend not only on the interest and ability of the student but also on the course that he or she intends to study at University. All this is explained to parents and students in the spring of Year 11, before GCSEs. The School needs to know student's choices so as to make a time-table which will permit as many students as possible to study the combination they desire.

All Year Twelve students also have regular Physical Education classes, and regular talks of a general educational and vocational value. (Note: the combinations of the above subjects that are available to any one student vary from year to year. Candidates must consult the Deputy Head in advance since as far as possible the combinations are tailor made to suit demand.).

The results of the GCSE and A level examinations are published in the local Press and in the annual Year Book. This latter is distributed free to all parents and prospective parents of the School.

Most British Universities require a candidate for a place to have passed a total of at least 5 subjects, at least 3 GCSEs and 2 A Levels in different subjects. However, since competition is stiff, a strong candidate will have 3 good A Levels and between 7 and 10 or 12 GCSEs. There is an Official Guide to University Entrance in the Library and in the Headmaster's Study.