Portsmouth College

• Location: Portsmouth, England,
• Founded in: 1888,
• Language of instruction: English,
• Type of education: mixed.

Portsmouth College is an institution that offers programs for high school graduates and students over the age of 19: from A-Level, T-Level and ESOL courses to preparatory courses for higher education, diplomas of basic degrees.

The history of the college began in 1888 when Portsmouth High School was founded; Later, it was retrained as a men's gymnasium, and then became a comprehensive school. In 1984, secondary education in the city was reorganized - all existing educational institutions lost their Sixth Form classes, which were merged into a new college, now known as Portsmouth College.

The college has four educational territories within the city, which have excellent conditions for preparing for admission to universities, vocational training. The teaching staff, including qualified researchers, specialists in various fields, helps students at every stage of the academic path: from admission to Portsmouth College to the transition to higher education. International students are offered extracurricular academic support: language courses, additional subject classes, activities for effective adaptation and much more.

Portsmouth College offers two types of educational status for students: students who have not yet completed their high school education and those who would like to gain professional skills with a high school diploma.

Honeypot Nursery is a nursery school for the children of college students, operating on the Highbury campus. There are 54 places for children from two months to school age, high-quality childcare is provided – the child will be treated as an equal person, regardless of culture, disability, ethnicity, religion or need for support.

The kindergarten has three separate, bright and child-friendly rooms that meet the different needs of each age group:

• "Bees": 2-20 months,
• Honey bees: 20-33 months,
• Industrious bees: 33-47 months.

The Children's Unit is open Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. for 50 weeks a year.

International students arriving at Portsmouth College for one semester are offered host family accommodation, which offers a unique and valuable experience with many benefits, from a comfortable home atmosphere to immersion in English language learning among native speakers. Families are regularly checked, updating the document on the provision of housing services for students. Students are accommodated in private rooms, have access to common areas: kitchen, living room, bathroom. Families offer daily meals, if necessary, the diet can be adjusted.

On the college campuses, there are dining rooms, cafeterias, which offer a wide variety of food and drinks, including vegetarian and vegan.

For students of Sixth Form courses, a diverse extracurricular program has been prepared: students can devote their free time to active work in the Student Union, play sports at an amateur or more professional level, participate in competitions and Olympiads. The largest event is the WorldSkills competition, known as the "Global Skills Olympiad": students show their talents in regional, national competitions in a variety of fields, including construction, hairdressing, horticulture, health and social welfare, automotive, engineering and computing. Participation in WorldSkills will allow you to develop various qualities that will be useful to students in the future: from leadership to professional.

International students over 19 years old have the opportunity to do what they love in a circle of like-minded people by joining one of the thematic clubs:

• Acoustic guitar,
• Acrylic painting,
• Learn Adobe Lightroom, Photoshop,
• Photography
• Charcoal drawing,
• Landscape photography and others.

• A wide range of accredited programs for schoolchildren and future university students,
• Four modern campuses in Portsmouth,
• Effective academic support for students, alumni,
• Funding for students with special needs.

Portsmouth College has four academic campuses in Portsmouth, which are distinguished by the state-of-the-art equipment of classrooms, laboratories, computer labs and recreation areas – each room is prepared for fruitful study in small groups and individually.

The college's sports centre is located on the Highbury campus and includes large sports and fitness halls, a dance studio. The full-size four-site sports hall is suitable for team games, including basketball, badminton, volleyball, netball, indoor hockey and football. With a mirrored wall, ballet barre and spring-loaded wooden flooring, the dance studio is ideally designed for group, individual lessons. Membership in the sports centre is available to everyone, and there are special rates for Portsmouth residents, students and seniors.

Free shuttle buses run between campuses.

Most programs are taught on the following semester dates:

• Autumn: September-December,
• Spring: January-April,
• Summer: April-July.

Classes are held on weekdays, rest is provided on weekends, vacations and days of national and international holidays. Every week after school, students have the opportunity to participate in campus, outdoor activities.

Thanks to the extensive list of financial aid, there may be no additional costs, however, there is a general list of fees and additional expenses:

• Accommodation, meals,
• Individual needs,
• Customized educational materials,
• Some extracurricular activities,
• Personal expenses.

For admission to the college, applicants need to submit an application by filling out a detailed form and providing the required documents. The admissions committee will contact candidates to invite them for interviews and possible entrance tests. Applicants who successfully pass this stage will receive an invitation letter with further instructions, after which they will be able to arrive at the campus and begin education.

Any of the programs at Portsmouth College is distinguished by effective academic preparation, thanks to which graduates successfully continue their academic path at universities in the UK and other countries.

The requirements for applicants differ depending on the chosen program. General criteria for applicants applying to Sixth Form courses:

• Personal documents: passport, visa or residence permit, health insurance,
• Academic certificate of the previous stage of school education, assessment cards and exam results,
• Personal resume,
• IELTS, TOEFL iBT or equivalent language test results. If a foreign student does not have the required level of linguistics, the college will offer him an additional course to improve his skills.

Programs for students over 19 years old differ in individual requirements depending on the chosen level of education, but all applicants must have a certificate of complete secondary education, language test results.

The college offers additional funding by supporting students based on various criteria:

• 16-19 years old – full-time students who received a grade of 4 or 5 in mathematics and/or English,
• 16-19 years old, full-time students, with a grade of 4 or higher in mathematics and/or English and coming from families in unfavorable economic situation
• from the age of 19 – if the apprentice is in receipt of relevant active benefits (e.g. unemployment benefit, employment and support benefit, universal credit) at the start of the course and is studying at Level 3,
• from 19 to 23 years old – the student receives the first full qualification of the second or third level: BTEC L2, NVQ Level 2-3 or equivalent,
• from 24 years old – the first receipt of a third-level qualification, which is based in the list of the National Skills Foundation,
• from the age of 19 – the student is either receiving unemployment benefit, employment and support allowance or universal credit at the time of the start of education, or is receiving a low salary and wants to take a course from the National Skills Fund,
• Any age – desire to learn functional skills or English, GCSE Mathematics,
• All students under the age of 19 before August 31,
• All students working and studying in Level 3 programmes earning less than £20,319 at the start of the course.

Funding may cover part or all of the cost of tuition.

• Guardianship services during the studies
• Student supervision