The Most Successful UK Schools for Oxbridge Admissions

Although Oxford and Cambridge do not hold any bias towards specific groups of applicants during the admissions process, some schools in the UK are able to consistently get more students admitted into Oxbridge than others. Which schools are these, and how do they do it? This guide will explore all of this and more.

Last Updated: 1st December 2025

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The University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge are two of the most competitive universities in the UK, but do any students have an inherent advantage? Neither university holds any biases during the admissions process, as the only things they consider are the student’s ability, motivation and attitude towards learning, all based on what has been provided in their application. 

However, while the right traits for Oxbridge students can be found in anyone, is it possible for students to have a better chance of being right for these universities due to their upbringing? More specifically, does the school that an applicant attends have a significant impact on their chances of success?

In this guide, we will explore the top schools in the UK for Oxbridge admissions to understand if there is any trend for how schools improve an applicant’s chances of success in the application process. 

The Top 80 UK Schools For Oxbridge Admissions

Let’s start by learning which schools were the most successful for Oxbridge admissions in the most recent application cycle, 2024/25, as well as comparisons to the previous year’s results. We will be judging success by each school’s offer rate, meaning the percentage of applicants who were given offers from Oxford or Cambridge. 

Top 80 UK Schools by Oxbridge Offer Rate

(Scroll left or right to view more data)

SchoolTypeApplied 2025Applied 2024% ChangeOffers 2025Offers 2024% ChangeSuccess 2025Success 2024% ChangeRegion
1Westminster SchoolIndependent1791658%966939%54%42%28%London
2Queen Elizabeth’s School, BarnetGrammar12710818%624732%49%44%11%London
3Hills Road Sixth Form CollegeSixth-form college245277-12%6269-10%25%25%1%East Of England
4Harris Westminster Sixth FormSixth-form college146158-8%574916%39%31%26%London
5Peter Symonds CollegeSixth-form college22219613%544229%24%21%16%South East
6Brampton Manor AcademySixth-form college2972739%54508%18%18%1%London
7Brighton Hove and Sussex Sixth Form CollegeSixth-form college184194-5%5356-5%29%29%-1%South East
8Eton CollegeIndependent162166-2%51486%31%29%9%South East
9St Paul’s Girls’ SchoolIndependent8898-10%48464%55%47%16%London
10St Paul’s School, LondonIndependent127161-21%4653-13%36%33%10%London
11Pate’s Grammar SchoolGrammar968414%422850%44%33%33%South West
12The Perse SchoolIndependent112137-18%4152-21%37%38%-4%East Of England
13Woodhouse College, FinchleySixth-form college14311030%412564%29%23%25%London
14King’s College SchoolIndependent15013115%4142-2%27%32%-15%London
15Tiffin SchoolGrammar15612030%41388%26%32%-18%South East
16Magdalen College School, OxfordIndependent1109911%3641-12%33%41%-20%South East
17Winchester CollegeIndependent1168930%3437-8%29%42%-30%South East
18King Edward VI Grammar School, ChelmsfordGrammar6782-18%322623%48%32%49%East Of England
19London Academy of ExcellenceSixth-form college8992-3%322339%36%25%44%London
20Henrietta Barnett SchoolGrammar7479-6%3134-9%42%43%-3%London
21City of London SchoolIndependent86808%312619%36%33%9%London
22Dame Alice Owen’s SchoolPartially selective8082-2%302143%38%26%44%East Of England
23Royal Grammar School GuildfordIndependent66635%292326%44%37%19%South East
24Latymer Upper SchoolIndependent8489-6%292516%35%28%23%London
25King’s College London Mathematics SchoolSixth-form college6370-10%2830-7%44%43%3%London
26Greenhead College, HuddersfieldSixth-form college14410636%282227%19%21%-7%Yorkshire and the Humber
27The Sixth Form College FarnboroughSixth-form college1138828%272129%24%24%0%South East
28Sevenoaks SchoolIndependent11310013%272317%24%23%4%South East
29Brighton CollegeIndependent7994-16%262218%33%23%43%South East
30Manchester Grammar SchoolIndependent84840%2630-13%31%36%-14%North West
31The Latymer SchoolGrammar917521%262030%29%27%6%London
32St Olave’s and St Saviour’s Grammar SchoolGrammar94111-15%2639-33%28%35%-21%London
33Dr Challoner’s Grammar SchoolGrammar806229%25250%31%40%-22%South East
34Exeter College, Hele Road CentreSixth-form college6567-3%241650%37%24%54%South West
35Loreto College, ManchesterSixth-form college676012%241741%36%28%28%North West
36Tonbridge SchoolIndependent806916%2427-11%30%39%-23%South East
37Highgate SchoolIndependent8793-6%2433-27%28%35%-21%London
38King Edward VI College, StourbridgeSixth-form college877221%241471%28%19%45%West Midlands
39King Edward VI Grammar School, ChelmsfordGrammar5982-28%2326-12%39%32%22%West Midlands
40University College SchoolIndependent6579-18%231553%35%19%86%London
41Hampton SchoolIndependent7786-10%231735%30%20%49%London
42Wellington College, CrowthorneIndependent6367-6%221822%35%27%29%South East
43Wilson’s SchoolGrammar99954%2229-24%22%31%-28%London
44Barton Peveril CollegeSixth-form college1030NA220NA21%NA#N/ASouth East
45Hereford Sixth Form CollegeSixth-form college5758-2%2123-9%37%40%-8%West Midlands
46City of London School for GirlsIndependent620NA210#DIV/0!34%#N/ANALondon
47London Academy of ExcellenceSixth-form college7992-14%2123-9%27%25%6%London
48The Skinners’ SchoolGrammar3640-10%191527%53%38%39%South East
49Colyton Grammar SchoolGrammar453915%1920-5%42%51%-17%South West
50Alleyn’s School, DulwichIndependent65608%1921-10%29%35%-16%London
51North London Collegiate SchoolIndependent6578-17%1922-14%29%28%4%London
52The Tiffin Girls SchoolGrammar766812%1921-10%25%31%-19%London
53Newham Collegiate Sixth FormSixth-form college130137-5%1940-53%15%29%-50%London
54Mossbourne Community AcademyState49474%1820-10%37%43%-15%London
55The Cherwell SchoolState5057-12%18176%36%30%20%South East
56Oundle SchoolIndependent5266-21%181429%35%21%65%East Midlands
57Reading SchoolGrammar7375-3%1823-22%25%31%-20%South East
58Wycombe Abbey School, High WycombeIndependent71668%1821-14%25%32%-21%South East
59Sutton Grammar SchoolGrammar725336%181429%25%26%-4%London
60Haberdashers’ Boys’ SchoolIndependent765538%181613%24%29%-18%South East
61Kendrick SchoolGrammar4142-2%17166%41%38%9%South East
62South Hampstead High SchoolIndependent470#DIV/0!170NA36%NANALondon
63The Blue Coat School, LiverpoolGrammar483923%171513%35%38%-7%North West
64Camden School for GirlsState5476-29%1731-45%31%41%-23%London
65Beauchamp City Sixth FormSixth-form college550NA170NA31%NANAEast Midlands
66King Edward VI Camp Hill School for GirlsGrammar565110%17170%30%33%-8%West Midlands
67Colchester Royal Grammar SchoolGrammar8184-4%1727-37%21%32%-34%East Of England
68Dulwich CollegeIndependent8086-7%1723-26%21%27%-21%London
69The National Mathematics and Science CollegeIndependent330NA160NA48%NANAWest Midlands
70Putney High SchoolIndependent440NA160NA36%NANALondon
71Altrincham Grammar School for GirlsGrammar49474%16157%33%32%2%North West
72Altrincham Grammar School for BoysGrammar5558-5%1617-6%29%29%0%North West
73The London Oratory SchoolState564719%161414%29%30%-5%London
74Wallington High School For GirlsGrammar550NA160NA29%NANASouth East
75Winstanley CollegeSixth-form college97112-13%1623-30%16%21%-21%North West
76James Allens Girls SchoolIndependent3849-22%1521-29%39%43%-8%London
77Nonsuch High School for GirlsGrammar500NA150NA30%NANASouth East
78Truro and Penwith CollegeFE College510#DIV/0!150NA29%NANASouth West
79Godalming CollegeSixth-form college680NA150NA22%NANASouth East
80The Judd School, TonbridgeGrammar73721%1526-42%21%36%-43%South East

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There’s a lot of data to unpack here, so let’s focus on the highlights. Firstly, the all-important question: which school in the UK had the best offer rates for Oxford and Cambridge? 

Most Successful School for Oxbridge Admissions 2025

The schools with the top three highest Oxbridge offer rates in 2025 were:

Of these schools, two are independent (St. Paul’s and Westminster) and one is a Grammar school (Skinners’). Excluding Westminster, these schools don’t have the highest applicant counts or students with offers, but these are the three schools that performed the best proportionally to the number of students who applied. 

However, you may prefer to think of the most successful schools as the ones that saw the most offers. In this case, these three schools performed the best: 

As we can see, most schools that have more applicants actually tend to have lower offer rates, with Westminster being the exception. Overall, Westminster School could be considered the most successful school for Oxbridge admissions in 2025, as it saw the most students get offers and had the second-highest offer rate, only missing out on the top spot by 1% and seeing double the amount of offers as the school in first. 

In the 2024 entry admissions cycle, Westminster also performed very well, being joint first for most offers received (69, alongside Hills Road Sixth Form College) and having one of the highest offer rates of the year (42%). This was a good result, but 2025 saw them perform even better. 

Other Notable Statistics

School With Most Oxbridge Applicants 2025

While all of these schools are in the top 10 of the list for offers received, the sheer number of applicants that applied from each meant that their offer rates were significantly lower than the smaller schools. 

One thing to note is that all of these schools are sixth form colleges, which can vary in size but are often very big. In fact, Peter Symonds College is the largest sixth form college in the UK, so it’s no surprise that it had so many Oxbridge applicants. 

Largest Change In Oxbridge Applications Between 2024 and 2025

Compared to 2024, Haberdashers’ Boys’ School saw the largest increase in applications, rising from 55 to 76. The biggest drop in applications came from Camden School for Girls, which went from 76 to 54. However, despite this, neither of these schools saw the largest increase or decrease in offers from Oxbridge. 

Largest Change in Oxbridge Offers Between 2024 and 2025

The largest increase in Oxbridge offers between the two years came from King Edward VI College, Stourbridge, which saw 14 offers in 2024 and 24 offers in 2025. While this isn’t the largest increase in value, it was a 71% increase proportionally, which wasn’t matched by any other school on this list. 

As for the biggest drop, this was seen by Newham Collegiate Sixth Form, which went from 40 Offers to 19, a drop of 53%. Some schools in the table do have missing data, however, so we are only considering the schools for which we have full data in these comparisons. 

Largest Change In Oxbridge Offer Rate Between 2024 and 2025

Lastly, we have the offer rates to consider. The largest increase in offer rate between 2024 and 2025 was at University College School, which rose from 19% to 35%. This school didn’t have very high applicant or offer numbers, but a drop in applications and an increase in offers helped it achieve such a large increase.

The biggest drop was seen Newham Collegiate Sixth Form, 29% to 15%. As this school already had the largest drop in offers without losing many applicants, it’s not surprising to see its offer rate drop so low, too. 

Overall, there were winners and losers in the 2024/25 admissions cycle, but the top school held onto the positions for the most part, indicating that these truly are the best schools for Oxbridge admissions. 

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State Schools vs Private Schools for Oxbridge Admissions

One of the longest-running myths about Oxbridge is that it’s just for private school kids, or that students from other schools have a disadvantage due to their school. While this has been true in the past, both universities have taken extensive steps to ensure the application process is fairer for everyone. 

However, with that being said, evidence does suggest that those from private schools have a slightly better chance of success than those from other schools, although students from private schools are still the minority at Oxford and Cambridge. The following data is from the 2024 admissions cycle and showcases how the offer and acceptance rates look for each cohort:

Oxford State School Application Statistics 2024

Applicants: 10,258

% of Total Applicants: 69.8%

Offers: 1,964

% of Total Offers: 65.6%

Acceptances: 1,668

% of Total Acceptances: 63.9%

Acceptance Rate: 16.3%

Oxford Private School Application Statistics 2024

Applicants: 3,852

% of Total Applicants: 26.2%

Offers: 933

% of Total Offers: 31.1%

Acceptances: 851

% of Total Acceptances: 32.6%

Acceptance Rate: 22.1%

Cambridge State School Application Statistics 2024

Applicants: 10,074

% of Total Applicants: 69.4%

Offers: 2,524

% of Total Offers: 70.5%

Acceptances: 1,897

% of Total Acceptances: 68.2%

Acceptance Rate: 18.8%

Cambridge Private School Application Statistics 2024

Applicants: 3,593

% of Total Applicants: 24.8%

Offers: 901

% of Total Offers: 25.2%

Acceptances: 776

% of Total Acceptances: 27.9%

Acceptance Rate: 21.6%

As we can see, private school students have roughly a 3% – 6% better chance of being admitted, although the odds are still not too much in their favour. 

However, let’s now consider the top schools for Oxbridge admissions. What school types are the most prominent among the top 80? Let’s find out: 

School TypeNumber of Schools
Independent30
Grammar24
Sixth Form College20
State4
FE College1
Partially Selective1

We can see here that very few of the top 80 schools for Oxbridge admission are actually state schools. Instead, we see that independent schools, grammar schools and sixth form colleges make up the vast majority of the list. 

While independent schools aren’t the majority here, they make up 38% of the list and are the largest single group, with 30 schools in total. This certainly feeds into the idea that independent school students have much better odds, but it’s important to understand that most independent schools have far smaller cohorts than other types of schools, which means there is a larger proportion of Oxbridge applicants, even if the actual amount is comparable to state schools. 

It makes sense to see more grammar schools and sixth form colleges in this list too, as the former are known for their emphasis on academic excellence, while the latter are dedicated to sixth form students, meaning more resources may be available for university application support.

Top UK Regions For Oxbridge Admissions

Next, let’s consider where these top schools are located. This data doesn’t represent the regions for all home applications at Oxbridge, but this data can be viewed on Oxford and Cambridge’s official admissions reports. 

RegionNo Schools% TotalApplied% TotalOffered% TotalOffer Rate
North East00.00%00.00%00.00%0%
North West67.50%4005.63%1155.24%29%
Yorkshire and the Humber11.25%1442.03%281.28%19%
East Midlands22.50%1071.51%351.60%33%
West Midlands56.25%2924.11%1014.61%35%
East of England56.25%5858.23%1828.30%31%
London3341.25%308343.37%99245.23%32%
South East2430.00%224031.51%64029.18%29%
South West45.00%2573.62%1004.56%39%
Scotland00.00%00.00%00.00%0%
Wales00.00%00.00%00.00%0%
Total80100.00%7108100.00%2193100.00%

In 2025, we can see that the vast majority of these schools were located in the south of England, with 33 specifically being located in London. Just like the debate regarding state and private schools, many also feel that Oxford and Cambridge have a southern bias in their admissions, with these statistics helping to inspire these conversations. 

With just 7 of the top schools being from northern regions and 12 coming from the east and midlands, it may seem that anyone north of Cambridge has a significantly reduced chance of success. However, it should be noted that applicants from the south have made up over 55% of applicants at Oxford in the past three years, with a similar percentage at Cambridge from 2024 entry. Overall, these regions don’t necessarily have the highest success rates, but they do generally perform well. 

It should also be noted that all of these schools are located in England, with none being in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. There are many reasons why this may be the case, but it is likely due to lower demand for Oxford and Cambridge in these countries, as evidenced by the university admissions reports. 

What Makes A Top School For Oxbridge Admissions?

So, we know which schools get the most applicants into Oxford and Cambridge, but how do they manage this? While the reasons may seem obvious, there are more reasons than you may initially consider:

School Type

Firstly, the school type definitely does play a role in what makes these schools so good at getting applicants into Oxbridge. Independent schools obviously have a good amount of funding to support their students (as well as students from higher-income families who can afford additional resources), grammar schools typically only admit higher performing students who can navigate the Oxbridge admissions process successfully, and sixth form colleges are able to dedicate more time and resources to university application support due to their limited cohort. So, it’s not just about the financial advantages that these schools may have.

Oxbridge Connections

Some schools will have access to Oxbridge alumni who can meet with students to explain the admissions process and provide tips. This may be through former students or other connections to students or the university faculty that the school’s staff may have, but these can be invaluable for students and give them a strong advantage in understanding the admissions process. 

Available Resources

We already know that independent schools and sixth form colleges will have additional resources available to support students, but what can these look like? Dedicated classes are a common support method which will teach students about the full admissions process. These sessions may be expanded further to include admissions test practice and mock interviews, which are all essential for effective application preparation.

As well as this, some schools may be able to provide students with extra resources, such as books and question banks. All of this can help a student significantly boost their chances of success, but only if they’re willing to make the most of it.  

Third Party Support

While individual resources can be useful, they may not offer a fully tailored experience for applicants to ensure they are preparing in the most effective way. Dedicated school sessions help with this somewhat, but these may not always be specific to Oxbridge applications or may not be as comprehensive as the students may need. 

Therefore, some schools, including ones on this list, partner with third-party support providers that specialise in Oxbridge admissions. These providers are dedicated to Oxbridge admissions, so their tutors and faculty can really hone in on what each student needs to ensure they perform well in their admissions tests and interviews. 

These usually come at an extra expense to the applicant, but the school partnership may include price reductions or specialised packages that include support that’s not available to other applicants. Realistically, this support is the most effective way to prepare for the Oxbridge admissions process, with preparatory schools like UniAdmissions boasting success rates above any of the top 80 UK schools. It does come with a price, but any school that can help its students access this support will be able to increase its Oxbridge success rates. 

So, there are many things that we can take away from this guide. While it may feel like the odds are stacked against you if you don’t attend one of these schools, remember that these students make up less than half of all applicant offers in the UK. There are still over 2,000 applicants each year from other schools who get their offers, so it’s never impossible to get your place, no matter where you study. 

Of course, we already know that additional support is the best way to boost your chances of success, and UniAdmissions has the highest Oxbridge success rate of any UK school, 59%. We offer comprehensive programmes for every major course at Oxford and Cambridge, each of which features hours of one-to-one tuition time, extensive live sessions, a large suite of expert resources and much more.   

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