SUTTON TRUST US PROGRAMME:

REFERENCE FORM
To apply to the Sutton Trust US Programme, each applicant must complete and
submit the student application form and ask their school to complete a reference
form to help us assess the students suitability for the programme. Both the
student and school forms are based on the US Common Application, an
admissions application used by over 500 American institutions. By using a school
reference form modelled on the Common Application, we will be able to follow
the holistic model of admissions employed by American universities and gain a
full view of your students academic performance, successes both inside and
outside of the classroom and ability to make the most of this programme. We
also hope that students and schools will get in the mindset of US admissions and
be able to re-use components of our application on American university
applications next autumn saving you time.

Teacher Details
Title: ______ First Name:_______________________
Surname:___________________________
Email Address:_____________________________ Job
Title:________________________________
School Name:______________________________ School
City/Town:_________________________
Student First Name:__________________________ Student
Surname:________________________
What type of state school does the student
attend?:_______________________________________
Is your school academically selective at age 11? If so, please explain the
admissions criteria or
process:_________________________________________________________________________
_

Confirm Student Eligibility

Do you have any reason to doubt that the student meets the following eligibility
criteria for the programme?
___________________________________________________________________

The student attends a state school in the UK

The student is in Year 12 or equivalent (e.g. S5 in Scotland)

The student does not hold US citizenship (this includes dual US citizenship)
The student is interested in learning about US culture and higher
education

How long has the student shown an interest in studying in the US?:
Never expressed an interest in studying in the US
Only after hearing about this programme
Since the start of Year 12
In Year 11 or before
Other

We hope that students accepted to the US Programme will seriously consider

applying for undergraduate study in the US. American university applications
usually require 2-3 recommendation letters. Please confirm that your school
would be willing to support the student in this process:
No

Yes

How does the students programme of study compare to others in his/her year
group? The students programme of study is
The most rigorous option available
More rigorous than the typical student at our school
On par with the typical student at our school
Less rigorous than the typical student at our school

Post-16 Qualifications
Please select the current post-16 qualifications the student is completing along
with their subject and predictions from the drop down menus below. Please
indicate if the student intends to take up to A-level (or equivalent, e.g. Scottish
Advanced Higher) vs the subjects the student is only taking at AS level only (or
equivalent, e.g. Scottish Highers) by ticking the final column where applicable.. If
you are not able to provide formal predictions at this time, please ask the subject

teachers to provide their most accurate predictions. Note that students were
asked to select a referee at their current school with access to this information.
This is essential to selection. If you do not have this information, we ask that you
either advise your student to choose a new referee as soon as possible, or to
work with the students current school to obtain the information.
Qualification
Prediction

Subject

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Of these subjects, what ones does the student plan to take at A2 (or equivalent,
e.g. Scottish Advanced Highers)?
__________________________________________________________
If the student's qualification/subject is not listed above, or if they are taking more
than 6 A-Level / AS-Level / Higher subjects, please use the box on the online
application to outline the qualification, subjects and grades.

School Context
Percentage of last years school leavers who attended university
:_____________________________
Percentage of students achieving 5A*-Cs on GCSEs
:________________________________________
Can you comment on typical destination of your school leavers (Oxbridge,
Russell Group, US universities, work,
etc) ?:_____________________________________________________________

Student Evaluation
How long have you known this student, and in what
context?:_______________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
What are the first five words that come to your mind to describe this students
personality?:
1.
2.
3.

4.
5.
How receptive do you think this student will be to guidance and advice from our
staff?
Very receptive
Receptive
Somewhat receptive
Unreceptive

Do you anticipate this student will be a strong candidate for Head Boy/Girl?
____________________
Are you aware of any special or extenuating circumstances that we should be
aware of, including disabilities, being a young carer, having to work to support
his/her family, family difficulties, etc.? If none, please enter No, or
N/A________________________________________________________
In several paragraphs, please explain what distinguishes this student from others
at your school, and why you believe your student would make the most of the
opportunities given to him/her in the Sutton Trust US Programme. As a guide we
suggest the written reference be 3-4 paragraphs in length (Max 500 words). It
is okay to add information or quotes from other teachers into your reference to
better illustrate the below points if needed. For example, you could discuss:

What makes this student unique?

How would you describe their character?
Why should we select him/her?
How does this student compare to his/her classmates in terms of academic
and extracurricular accomplishments?
How does he/she compare to other students youve worked with in your
career?
How is he/she perceived by students and the faculty?
What is it like to have this student around class/school?
What about this student's personality helps them stand out?
Are there any challenges this student has overcome academically or
personally that you know of?

Please rate the student on the following:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Academic Achievement:
Participation in school and extra-curricular activities:
Respect of faculty and staff:
Respect of peers:
Work ethic:

6.
7.
8.
9.

Maturity:
Motivation:
Leadership:
Creativity and independent thinking:

By submitting this reference, you agree that:

You know the student well in an educational capacity.

You are neither a family member nor a close family friend.

You are able to truthfully comment on the students academic ability,

character, interests and goals.

After submitting this form you will not be able to change any of your answers, so
please make sure you are happy with your responses and that all answers are
filled in correctly before you press Submit Reference.
Please be aware that the deadline for completing the online version of
this school reference form is 12 noon, Thursday, 29 January 2015.