Thursday 28 August 2014
Monday 11 August 2014
Why study with Honsbridge Sixth?
Firstly, we have a unique and affordable A-Level programme. For the same price (RM 80-90k) as many local A-Level courses you get
- 1 year in the UK at Pembrokeshire College, Homestay accommodation included.
- Highly qualified, oxbridge educated staff, both in Malaysia and the UK.
- Dedicated staff to help with your UCAS application to the UK Universities.
- An extra hour of 1:1 time with your teachers in every one of your subjects once in the UK.
- All examination fees included within the price.
- Assistance with booking flights and visa arrangements.
You will also be based in the UK in your second year when you are applying to Universities, this has major benefits compared to studying in Malaysia.
- You are able to visit many university campuses and open days to really get a feel for where you will be spending the next three or four years of your life
- For Oxford and Cambridge, and Medical Interviews, you will be in the UK already, so will be able to perform at your best, not jet-lagged and sleepy from your 13-18 hour flight.
- Interviews for Medicine are spread throughout the year, this would require multiple trips to the UK.
- You will already have been gradually accustomed to UK culture, from the safety and security of the Homestay programme.
- Free medical care in the UK - as a full time registered student at a UK institution you are eligible to receive free medical consultation with a GP and hospital treatment through the UK National Health Service.
- Access to a 24 hour emergency help-line
- A dedicated International Office to help you with accommodation, guidance and student welfare.
- Full access to the College's extensive computing and library facilities.
How are we able to offer such amazing value?
Simple. We are partnered with a UK Government funded Sixth Form College, the government regulates the fees that they are able to charge to foreign students so, in place the unregulated private colleges which can charge up to £ 20 - 30k GBP for a single years study, the tuition fees are set at £6250 for the A-Level Plus programme, which is offered as a free upgrade to Honsbridge Students at the normal A-Level price of £5250, a further saving of £1000.
A-Level Science and Maths Book Lists
We prepare students for the OCR Biology and Chemistry and (MEI) Maths, and AQA Physics UK A-levels.
Physics AQA – Nelson Thornes
Students are recommended to purchase the following textbooks for their chosen courses.
Biology OCR - Heinemann
OCR Biology AS ISBN: 978-0435691806
OCR Biology A2 ISBN: 978-0435691905
Chemistry OCR – Heinemann
OCR Chemistry AS ISBN: 978-0-435691-81-3
OCR Chemistry A2 ISBN: 978-0-435691-98-1
Physics AQA – Nelson Thornes
AQA Physics A AS ISBN: 978-0-7487-8282-6
AQA Physics A A2 ISBN: 978-0-7487-8281-9
Maths OCR MEI Structured Mathematics – Hodder
Mechanics 1 M1 ISBN: 978-0-340-81400-0
AS Pure Mathematics C1 C2 ISBN: 978-0-340-81397-3
A2 Pure Mathematics C3/C4 – Not required until arrival in UK
Mechanics 2 M2 OR Statistics 1 S1 – Not required until arrival in UK
Further Maths OCR MEI Structured Mathematics – Hodder
AS Further Pure Mathematics FP1 ISBN: 978-0-3408-1460-4
A2 Further Mathematics FP2 – Not required until arrival in UK
Thursday 3 April 2014
Contact Information
You can reach us at
Tel: 01700 815 188 (General Enquires)
or visit us at
No. 20 Jalan PJU 5/7
Dataran Sunway
Kota Damansara
47810. PJ.
or, if you have any specific questions or comments you can contact the Head of Sixth directly,
Dr Alistair Furze
+60 173 082 717
alistair@honsbridge.co
Tel: 01700 815 188 (General Enquires)
or visit us at
No. 20 Jalan PJU 5/7
Dataran Sunway
Kota Damansara
47810. PJ.
or, if you have any specific questions or comments you can contact the Head of Sixth directly,
Dr Alistair Furze
+60 173 082 717
alistair@honsbridge.co
Do you know anyone who might be interested?
Would you like RM 300? Earn RM 300 by introducing a friend who registers for the programme. Do you know anyone who might be interested in studying for A-levels in Kota Damansara and the UK? Help us spread the word.
Three A-levels from the core subjects of Maths, Biology, Chemistry and Physics from RM 80k (including registration, tuition at our Kota Damansara campus for the first year, and tuition and accommodation for the second year at our partner college in the UK).The students will be the UK for visiting universities, potential medical and Oxbridge interviews, and experience UK culture and family life, cared for by Pembrokeshire College's Home-stay programme.
Additional (optional) subjects available such as English Literature and Language or Business Studies (not included).
If you introduce a friend to the Honsbridge Sixth A-level programme, and that friend subsequently registers before the end of the promotional period, we will give you RM 300 cash.
Terms and conditions apply. The promotional period lasts until 30th April 2014.
Tuesday 25 March 2014
"Since young" and other things not to say in your personal statement.
Personal statements are hard and take time, good personal statements take quite a few drafts to get right. The most common mistake is trying to use bombastic language to try to impress the reader, this never works. It is a personal statement, it has to sound like you. If you try to look more intelligent, using big, uncommon words I can promise you that it will have the opposite effect.
2nd Rule: Give them detailed examples which show you enjoy the skills or experience you are claiming.
If you have space fine, but the people reading these know you only have 4000 characters, and if you take up the last 300 by saying how much you will relish and appreciate studying at such a fine establishment in the UK as it has been your lifetime dream, you are simply repeating what everyone else could (and frequently does), write (and the universities know that all your universities read the same statement).
6th Rule: Structure
Personally, I would suggest that you start drafting your personal statement with the following paragraphs. Don't worry, as your personal statement develops and evolves this will most likely change, but it is a reasonable starting point.
1st - Your chosen subject of study and why it fascinates you.
2nd - Elaborate on any research you have done, what have you read? and more importantly, where did that reading take you? Did you start reading one article only to then spend the next three hours learning about a tiny thing which was mentioned on the third page as it captured your attention? Try to read as much as possible. There is a reason why you don't study a subject at Oxbridge, you read it.
3rd - Have you done any shadowing? What did you LEARN from it, what did you observe, how has it benefitted you? Why are you a better prospective candidate from having done it? Universities love students who are observant and can teach themselves (as it's what you will be doing).
4th/5th - Your society/sporting activities outside the classroom. But most importantly again, what did you do? What did you learn? Just saying you were President of the Photographic Society tells them nothing, how many members did you have? Did you have any activities? Outings? Events? Did you organise them? How did you delegate?
In general, your personal statement should follow the structure of most important, to least important
1st Rule of Personal statements: be honest.
Don't lie. Simple as that, if you feel that you have to embellish it slightly, try to keep it to a minimum.
2nd Rule: Give them detailed examples which show you enjoy the skills or experience you are claiming.
Don't just brag. "I am awesome and have excellent interpersonal skills and work well as a team" means nothing. In fact, the word "skills" never needs to appear in your personal statement, show by example. "As vice president for the Basket Cases Society I organised a fundraiser, liaising with the owners and managers of the venue and coordinating a team of volunteers..." is so much more powerful. Tell them what you did and any difficulties you experienced and overcame.
3rd Rule: Tell them what you have learnt from your experiences, don't just list any shadowing/placements you have had.
What did you observe and learn from your experiences in a hospital? How did the doctors liaise with the nurses? If you were lucky enough to observe any surgeries, what did you notice about what was happening? How did you benefit from the experience? You should ideally show the person reading the personal statement that you have not wasted your time sitting in the corner twiddling your thumbs.
What did you observe and learn from your experiences in a hospital? How did the doctors liaise with the nurses? If you were lucky enough to observe any surgeries, what did you notice about what was happening? How did you benefit from the experience? You should ideally show the person reading the personal statement that you have not wasted your time sitting in the corner twiddling your thumbs.
4th Rule: It is a PERSONAL statement.
You need to be happy with it, it is not your friend's, parent's or teacher's personal statement, you do not need to follow their advice if you do not want to, the universities who do read them, want to know you, not your extended family, make it personal, talk about yourself, your interest (academic mostly!), and about what you want.
5th Rule: You do not need an introductory or a concluding paragraph.
You need to be happy with it, it is not your friend's, parent's or teacher's personal statement, you do not need to follow their advice if you do not want to, the universities who do read them, want to know you, not your extended family, make it personal, talk about yourself, your interest (academic mostly!), and about what you want.
5th Rule: You do not need an introductory or a concluding paragraph.
If you have space fine, but the people reading these know you only have 4000 characters, and if you take up the last 300 by saying how much you will relish and appreciate studying at such a fine establishment in the UK as it has been your lifetime dream, you are simply repeating what everyone else could (and frequently does), write (and the universities know that all your universities read the same statement).
6th Rule: Structure
Personally, I would suggest that you start drafting your personal statement with the following paragraphs. Don't worry, as your personal statement develops and evolves this will most likely change, but it is a reasonable starting point.
1st - Your chosen subject of study and why it fascinates you.
2nd - Elaborate on any research you have done, what have you read? and more importantly, where did that reading take you? Did you start reading one article only to then spend the next three hours learning about a tiny thing which was mentioned on the third page as it captured your attention? Try to read as much as possible. There is a reason why you don't study a subject at Oxbridge, you read it.
3rd - Have you done any shadowing? What did you LEARN from it, what did you observe, how has it benefitted you? Why are you a better prospective candidate from having done it? Universities love students who are observant and can teach themselves (as it's what you will be doing).
4th/5th - Your society/sporting activities outside the classroom. But most importantly again, what did you do? What did you learn? Just saying you were President of the Photographic Society tells them nothing, how many members did you have? Did you have any activities? Outings? Events? Did you organise them? How did you delegate?
In general, your personal statement should follow the structure of most important, to least important
The cardinal rule is that you should never copy anything from the internet or other people's personal statements, personal statements are routinely run through anti-plagarism software by universities, if you copy and paste from other people's personal statements, then the university is well within their right to reject your application, so do not let other people copy yours either.
Oh, and please remember, "Rules are for the guidance of wise men, and the obedience of fools." It is your personal statement, and if you can talk about your passion for your interest in Maths, Chemistry or stamp collecting for 4000 characters feel free to do so, feel free to ignore any advice you are given, but don't dismiss it out of hand.
Don't panic, the UCAS personal statement is the least important part of the application, but, it is the part you have the most control over, remember that some universities do not even read them, but some do, and what you write in it can form the basis or beginning of your interview, if you have one, so, for the love of all you hold sacred, if you mention you are particularly interested in a topic, or say you have read something in your personal statement, make sure you re-read it, or re-research it before any interview.
If you have problems starting to write it, try listing all the things you think you might want to include in bullet points, tick them off once you have included them. Very few people will be able to sit down and write it instantly, so it might be a good idea to start building your list slowly, over a few weeks, adding points as they come to mind.
Good Luck.
Oh, and please remember, "Rules are for the guidance of wise men, and the obedience of fools." It is your personal statement, and if you can talk about your passion for your interest in Maths, Chemistry or stamp collecting for 4000 characters feel free to do so, feel free to ignore any advice you are given, but don't dismiss it out of hand.
Don't panic, the UCAS personal statement is the least important part of the application, but, it is the part you have the most control over, remember that some universities do not even read them, but some do, and what you write in it can form the basis or beginning of your interview, if you have one, so, for the love of all you hold sacred, if you mention you are particularly interested in a topic, or say you have read something in your personal statement, make sure you re-read it, or re-research it before any interview.
If you have problems starting to write it, try listing all the things you think you might want to include in bullet points, tick them off once you have included them. Very few people will be able to sit down and write it instantly, so it might be a good idea to start building your list slowly, over a few weeks, adding points as they come to mind.
Good Luck.
Sunday 23 March 2014
A-Level Open Day
We are delighted to invite you to visit us at One Honsbridge in Dataran Sunway, opposite the Neighbourhood Food Court in Jalan PJU 5/7 for our A-Level Open Day. You will have the opportunity to meet the new Head of Sixth, Dr Alistair Furze, Amy Lum, the representative of our partner College in the UK, as well as many of our teachers and Senior Leadership Team here in Malaysia.
The event will begin at 2pm with refreshments, and conclude at around 3.30pm. There will be brief talks about the structure of the courses and the twinning program There will also be plenty of opportunity to ask any questions about the twinning programme as well as the option to benefit from the early bird discount.
Our address is
Honsbridge International
No. 20 Jalan PJU 5/7
Dataran Sunway, Kota Damansara.
47810 Petaling Jaya.
What's in a Name?
Honsbridge Sixth.
In the UK, A-level colleges are referred to as "Sixth Form" and Honsbridge has a history of naming their premises numerically. Back in 2008 Honsbridge started in Dataran Sunway before quickly expanding into Honsbridge 2, the then, pre-IGCSE programme, with the initial facilities being known as Honsbridge 1, with the third, Honsbridge 3 before moving to the single premises of One Honsbridge.
Honsbridge Sixth seemed an appropriate combination of the UK A-level influence and Honsbridge tradition also under the umbrella of One Honsbridge, located at the main campus, at No. 20, Jalan PJU 5/7.
When Honsbridge Sixth opens its doors to students on 7th August 2014, students will be based at our newly renovated, secure Sixth Form classroom complex within One Honsbridge.
In the UK, A-level colleges are referred to as "Sixth Form" and Honsbridge has a history of naming their premises numerically. Back in 2008 Honsbridge started in Dataran Sunway before quickly expanding into Honsbridge 2, the then, pre-IGCSE programme, with the initial facilities being known as Honsbridge 1, with the third, Honsbridge 3 before moving to the single premises of One Honsbridge.
Honsbridge Sixth seemed an appropriate combination of the UK A-level influence and Honsbridge tradition also under the umbrella of One Honsbridge, located at the main campus, at No. 20, Jalan PJU 5/7.
When Honsbridge Sixth opens its doors to students on 7th August 2014, students will be based at our newly renovated, secure Sixth Form classroom complex within One Honsbridge.
Monday 17 March 2014
A-Level Programme Fees
Honsbridge are delighted to be able to offer, in partnership with Pembrokeshire College, a UK A-Level education at a fraction of the normal price of British independent boarding schools.
Students have the benefit of access to Oxbridge educated staff, both within Malaysia, at Honsbridge, and the UK, as well as the free £1000 upgrade to the A-Level Plus programme (available to Honsbridge students). This provides them with an hour of one to one, face to face contact time with their teachers for each of their subjects every week.
Pembrokeshire College is a UK government funded institution which allows us to offer substantial savings when compared to the inflated fees of private institutions, both in the UK, and Malaysia.
RM 3800 - Registration
RM 20,000 - Malaysia Tuition, 3 Subjects
£ 5250 - UK Tuition (RM 28,648, including the free £1000 upgrade to the A-Level Plus Programme)
£ 5000 - 5500 UK Accommodation (recommended by Pembrokeshire College, RM 27,284 - 30,009)*
Grand total : RM 79,732 (based on the current exchange rate)**
*The fee for the Home-stay is calculated at £ 104 per week during term time. Breakfast, dinner and bus transportation are included.
**Flights, course materials and examination fees are not included.
Sunday 16 March 2014
Head's Welcome Message
Hello,
Thank you for taking the time to investigate Honsbridge Sixth and our innovative A-level twinning programme and I would like to welcome you to our blog, I hope that it answers many questions you have about who we are and what we are able to offer you. If you have further questions or inquiries, please don't hesitate to get in touch.
I am greatly excited about our inaugural class, the students will be setting out on what I am sure will be a valuable, exciting and rewarding experience and I wish them all the best for their journey. Throughout my time in Malaysia I have been consistently impressed with the calibre of the local A-level students I have had the privilege to teach, their maturity, focus, drive and determination to succeed continue to impress me. I am firmly of the belief that small class sizes and individual attention is the key to success at A-Level. Small class sizes allow a higher level of care, where productive and trusting relationships between student and teacher greatly benefit the student's progress and comprehension.
At Honsbridge Sixth, we aim to fully engage the student with teachers whose interest and knowledge about their subjects inspires the students to fully investigate and develop their understanding and to develop into self-sufficient and independent learners, skills that will greatly benefit them at university.
I am very pleased to have the opportunity to be here at the very start, and I firmly believe that the course, especially the time they spend in the UK, will be of tremendous benefit to the students as it will introduce them to life in a foreign country from a safe and supportive enviroment so that their first year at university is not too much of a shock to the system. They will also have the opportunity to visit many UK cities and university open days, which will allow them to make a fully informed decision when it comes to choosing where they would like to continue their studies and spend the next three or four years of their lives. I am struck by how hard it must be for the local Malaysian students currently attending interviews for medicine in the UK to step off a twelve or eighteen hour flight and then perform at their best, not to mention the cost of flying off at short notice, especially for the Oxford interviews in the peak December period.
I was very impressed when I visited Pembrokeshire College by the quality of the facilities, the new and modern feel of the building, the well equipped laboratories, and the staff whom I had the fortune to meet. I have no doubt that our students will be very well taken care of and will greatly benefit from the experience.
Dr Alistair Furze
MChem Oxf, MPhil PhD Manc, QTS Chest
Head of Sixth
Thank you for taking the time to investigate Honsbridge Sixth and our innovative A-level twinning programme and I would like to welcome you to our blog, I hope that it answers many questions you have about who we are and what we are able to offer you. If you have further questions or inquiries, please don't hesitate to get in touch.
I am greatly excited about our inaugural class, the students will be setting out on what I am sure will be a valuable, exciting and rewarding experience and I wish them all the best for their journey. Throughout my time in Malaysia I have been consistently impressed with the calibre of the local A-level students I have had the privilege to teach, their maturity, focus, drive and determination to succeed continue to impress me. I am firmly of the belief that small class sizes and individual attention is the key to success at A-Level. Small class sizes allow a higher level of care, where productive and trusting relationships between student and teacher greatly benefit the student's progress and comprehension.
At Honsbridge Sixth, we aim to fully engage the student with teachers whose interest and knowledge about their subjects inspires the students to fully investigate and develop their understanding and to develop into self-sufficient and independent learners, skills that will greatly benefit them at university.
I am very pleased to have the opportunity to be here at the very start, and I firmly believe that the course, especially the time they spend in the UK, will be of tremendous benefit to the students as it will introduce them to life in a foreign country from a safe and supportive enviroment so that their first year at university is not too much of a shock to the system. They will also have the opportunity to visit many UK cities and university open days, which will allow them to make a fully informed decision when it comes to choosing where they would like to continue their studies and spend the next three or four years of their lives. I am struck by how hard it must be for the local Malaysian students currently attending interviews for medicine in the UK to step off a twelve or eighteen hour flight and then perform at their best, not to mention the cost of flying off at short notice, especially for the Oxford interviews in the peak December period.
I was very impressed when I visited Pembrokeshire College by the quality of the facilities, the new and modern feel of the building, the well equipped laboratories, and the staff whom I had the fortune to meet. I have no doubt that our students will be very well taken care of and will greatly benefit from the experience.
Dr Alistair Furze
MChem Oxf, MPhil PhD Manc, QTS Chest
Head of Sixth
Head of Honsbridge Sixth
Dr Alistair Furze, after completing his A-levels at Hurstpierpoint College in Sussex, read Chemistry for four years at Lincoln College, Oxford, before moving to Liverpool University in 2001 where he undertook research in the field of Tissue Engineering, achieving an MPhil and PhD from the University of Manchester through a unique twinning programme between the two Universities. He was awarded his Qualified Teacher Status from Chester University and went on to teach Chemistry at Downe House School, a prestigious girls boarding school in the heart of Berkshire.
Moving to Malaysia in 2009, he first worked at Kolej Tuanku Ja'afar (KTJ), where he taught both Physics and Chemistry, before moving to Kolej Yayasan UEM (KYUEM) which he is joining us from.
Welcome to Honsbridge Sixth
We offer a novel opportunity for post SPM/IGCSE students to study for A-levels complete with a year in the UK from under RM 80k (excluding flights, course materials, and registration fees).
Students study half the linear course with us at our premises in Dataran Sunway, Kota Damansara, just opposite Neighborhood Food Court, for one year before moving to our partner College in the UK for the second half of the course, and all their examinations.
Students, when in the UK, will be accommodated with local families, where they will gain a taste of family life in the UK through Pembrokeshire College's Home-stay programme. Each day they will be transported from their accommodation to the college, and returned each evening.
We believe that the year in the UK is an invaluable experience and will greatly help our students with their university applications process, as they have a dedicated office to assist them with their UCAS applications, are able to visit university campuses and cities, attend medical or Oxbridge interviews without having to fly to the UK at a moments notice, and, perhaps most importantly, experience UK culture in a safe and secure family enviroment before being released to fend for themselves at University.
We are delighted to be able to offer this programme to students at a very competitive rate through our relationship with Pembrokeshire College, a UK government funded Sixth Form College in Haverfordwest.
Pembrokeshire College is located in South Wales, in a delightfully quiet and scenic part of the UK. Known locally as "Little England", the students should have no difficulty understanding their teachers and locals as there is no appreciable difference in the accent from most parts of England.
Students have access to Oxbridge educated teachers both in Malaysia and the UK, and students from Honsbridge also receive a free automatic upgrade to their 'plus' programme, when in the UK, providing them with an hour of 1:1, face to face contact time with each one of their teachers, every single week.
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