Success in New Zealand Scholarship examinations represents the pinnacle of academic achievement for secondary school students.
In addition to the substantial monetary awards available to successful candidates, the examinations provide students with a rigorous assessment that compares well with the experience of studying a tertiary qualification.
To build on St Paul’s academic success, and to affirm our commitment to providing education of the highest quality, we have developed specialised scholarship programmes for our students.
Scholarship subject tuition
Students are welcome to enter for New Zealand Scholarship in any subject offered at St Paul’s. The heads of each department offer subject-specific programmes of tuition designed to give scholarship candidates the best chance of success.
Tutorial sessions are offered for most subjects and run in the mornings prior to school, at lunchtime or after school. These sessions are regarded as compulsory for students that are serious about entering New Zealand Scholarship at the end of the year.
Academic Scholarship group
At the beginning of each academic year a group of Year 13, and some exceptional Year 12, students are selected to be a part of St Paul’s Collegiate’s scholarship group; based on their previous academic results and their potential as genuine New Zealand Scholarship candidates.
The group meets fortnightly for generic skills seminars and to hear from guest speakers. We have identified that deficiencies in certain generic skills can form significant barriers to success in Scholarship for even the very best academics. These skills include essay writing, question interpretation, exam technique and revision skills.
To address this, a number of teachers have contributed to a seminar programme designed to ensure that the students enter the end of year examinations armed with this skill set. These seminars are for the whole scholarship group and any other student who is planning on entering Scholarship.
Mentors are also provided to offer advice in areas such as time management, workload management and study planning. The mentor is also there to assist students in finding and applying for other scholarship funding available through a variety of sources.
In addition to the money earned from success in the Scholarship, each year a number of students are assisted by the assistant headmaster (academic) to secure further scholarships worth tens-of-thousands of dollars. Some students have gained full study scholarships worth in excess of $100,000.
