Enrolment
A magical quill at Hogwarts detects the birth of wizard children and writes their names into a large parchment book. Every year, a teacher (in recent years, Minerva McGonagall) checks this book and sends a letter to the children who will have turned eleven years old by 31 August. Acceptance or declination of a place at Hogwarts must be posted by 31 July. The letter also contains a list of supplies like spell books, uniform, and other things that the student will need. The prospective student is expected to buy all the necessary materials, normally from shops in Diagon Alley, a concealed street near Charing Cross Road in London found behind a pub by the name of The Leaky Cauldron. Students who cannot afford their supplies can receive financial aid from the school, as was the case with the young orphan Tom Riddle.
Letters to Muggle-born witches and wizards, who may not be aware of their powers and are unfamiliar with the concealed wizarding world, are delivered in person by a member of Hogwarts staff, who then explains to the parents/guardians about magical society, and reassures them regarding this news.[HP7] They also assist the family in regards to buying supplies and gaining access to Diagon Alley.
Each student is allowed to bring a cat, rat, toad, or owl. First year students require equipment for their different subjects. Equipment listed in the acceptance letter includes a wand, a standard size 2 pewter cauldron, a set of brass scales, a set of glass or crystal phials, a kit of basic potion ingredients (for Potions), and a telescope (for Astronomy). The Hogwarts uniform consists of plain work robes in black, as well as a plain black hat, a pair of protective gloves, and a black winter cloak with silver fastenings. This most students get from Madam Malkins, in Diagon Alley. Each uniform must contain the wearer's nametag. First years are not allowed a broomstick of their own, though an exception to this rule is made for Harry in his first year after it is discovered that he has an excellent ability as a Seeker.
Grading and assessment
During their first four years, students need only to pass each of their subjects before advancing to the next level the following year. Regular exams and lessons usually seem to be graded on a numerical scale from 0 to 100, even though Hermione is known to have received 112% in Charms in Book 1 page 271, and 320% in Book 3 page 430 in Muggle Studies but this is probably only used for comical purposes. If students fail in their year, they need to repeat it in the following school year.
To qualify as a registered practitioner of magic, students must study for the compulsory Ordinary Wizarding Level (O.W.L.) examinations taken in the fifth year. If passed, a student may proceed to the Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests (N.E.W.T.) level, a more advanced exam covering fewer subjects in more depth, taken at the end of the seventh year.
Subjects are graded on the following scale:
Passing Grades
- O = Outstanding
- E = Exceeds Expectations
- A = Acceptable
Failing Grades
- P = Poor
- D = Dreadful
- T = Troll
The O.W.L.s roughly corresponds to the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE), and the N.E.W.T.s to the A-level examinations used in the English and Welsh secondary school system. In order to proceed to a N.E.W.T., a student usually needs to have achieved at least an E in the O.W.L. of the same subject, although some professors (e.g. Professor Snape) insist upon a grade of O. Students who fail in their exams or who do not achieve high enough grades continue to take O.W.L. classes in their sixth and seventh years.
At the end of their fifth year, students speak briefly with their head of house to decide which classes to continue in depending on their O.W.L. scores and their goals after school. The classes they decide to continue are considerably more advanced.
Because they dropped one or more classes, students in their sixth and seventh year may get several class sessions off per week. The heavy workload that each of these classes require means that students usually spend these times studying and doing homework. At the end of their seventh and final year, students take the N.E.W.T. exams, which test what the student has learned over the past two years. Many professions require high grades in these tests, meaning that students must work very hard to ensure that they pass.
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