The Independent School Entrance Guide, recently published by the Parent Brief, has advised parents against sending their children to highly academic schools, as competing against their equally smart classmates could hinder their child’s chances of getting into either Oxford or Cambridge.

Allegedly, due to admissions quotas at different colleges that prevent a college from accepting too many students from the same secondary school, it is advised that parents should look into schools that suit their child’s academic ability, instead of aiming for the most academically rigorous.

“The schools on the top of the league tables have selected their cohort as potential Oxbridge candidates all along. In some schools, the majority apply to Oxbridge and each applicant will have the marks and the ability to succeed there. But there are limits to the numbers that can reasonably be taken from any single school,” wrote Victoria Barker, editor of the Parent Brief.

Aside from the practical concerns regarding whether the school from which you apply will affect your chances of admission to Oxbridge, Barker also pointed out that the academic pressure at highly selective schools could be detrimental to the mental health of students, proving counterproductive to their learning.

“A highly selective school will know that it can do little to improve its Oxbridge numbers, so it may provide less help to its Oxbridge applicants than the schools eager to improve their Oxbridge numbers. Indeed, knowing that each Oxbridge college will likely take only one child from the school in a given field, the school may be reluctant to support too many applications.”

She added: “When it comes to university admissions, the pupils of the most selective schools are competing against each other for entry to the top universities – and this can be an unpleasant experience for a child who is not as accomplished as their friends.”

Despite the fact that the Head of Admissions at the University of Oxford had previously stated that an applicant from a low-performing school or disadvantaged home would “more likely be shortlisted for an interview”, a spokesperson from the university has denied the existence of a quota system. He said: “Colleges do not operate a quota system by school. Every application to Oxford is assessed individually on academic ability and potential alone.” However, Clarissa Farr, High Mistress of St Paul’s Girls’ School, said: “Schools will advise their students individually and spread candidates across the colleges – this needn’t disadvantage anyone as there is a range of possibilities.”

Alice Phillips, Headmistress of St Catherine’s, Bramley, also said that the school assists Oxbridge applicants in choosing colleges to maximise chances of admission.

She said: “We encourage girls to talk openly with their tutors about their long list of colleges and to know that if they were to choose the same college as another person from the school it just might have an impact, and the more so if the subject was the same, but we do not advise hedging bets in order to get in in the first place.

“We have occasionally advised those who have no preference to put in an open application but that is very rare.”

Speaking to Varsity, an undergraduate who studied at Brighton College, which was ranked as the fifth-best independent school in the UK last year for A-Level results, said that the school was strategic in sending applicants.

“The number of Oxbridge offers is such an important number for them. They try to maintain the image of being the school for Oxbridge applicants. They didn’t force you to apply, of course, but they’d say, you have five UCAS choices, put an Oxbridge college in there somewhere!

“They would mark down who’s applying for what and to which college, and if there were clashes, they’d tell you,” he said.

“More like they’d tell the ones who are less likely to get in [to change their choice of college]!” his friend added, also an undergraduate reading Natural Sciences who had previously studied at Brighton College. Regarding the school’s preparation for Oxbridge applications, he said: “If you were an Oxbridge applicant, you handed in your personal statement earlier. They would read it, screen the material you’d written, and basically polish it for you.

“If they felt you had a higher chance of getting in, they’d give you more support in writing it. Mock interviews and interview preparation was so intense. For people that have a chance of getting in, [the school] makes sure they get in. At the end of Year 12, the ones who were better academically had to attend some kind of Oxbridge class each week.

“You didn’t have to go, but there was [a class] for every subject. Basically, they made you do as much work and learn as much as possible.”

Nicholas Oulton, who is the Managing Director at Gresham Books, of which the Parent Brief is a subsidiary, said: “In the very selective schools, everyone is super bright, they can’t all get into Oxford and Cambridge and therefore there is a feeling that if you’re at that school, there must be some degree to which the school has to prioritise top star pupils.”