Oxford and Cambridge universities have come under fire from the head of Britain’s private schools for utilizing new evaluation techniques that “favor” public students over those who attended fee-paying institutions.
The new admissions procedure, according to Melvyn Roffe, head of the Headmasters’ and Headmistresses’ Conference, “tends to reinforce the idea that school type is being employed by universities as a “quick and dirty” proxy measure to make the system look more fair.”
“Is it really making things fairer?” said Mr. Roffe, head of George Watson’s College in Edinburgh, of the procedure. “It may help some reach objectives. It may even have some Oxford admission coaches fist-bumping in pleasure.”
He was making reference to the Oxford and Cambridge method in which a candidate’s GCSE record is “contextualized” if they are anticipated to get three A* marks at the A-level.
A comprehensive schools database that contains precise information about the applicant’s school, down to the percentage of students who get free lunches, is examined by admissions tutors.
The applicant’s GCSE scores are then evaluated against those of the other students in their school, not against those of the general populace.
A candidate is considered successful for Cambridge if their GCSE scores are in the top 20%.
Mr. Roffe is worried that this evaluation favors public institutions at the cost of private sector students, whose scores often are higher and who come from more affluent socioeconomic backgrounds.
Is the fact that fewer independent school students being admitted to Oxbridge proof that the admissions process for universities is getting more equitable? In yesterday’s Daily Telegraph, he wrote. I’m not so certain,
According to official statistics given by Oxford and Cambridge, fewer students from private schools are now enrolling in those two universities.
According to statistics, 58.2% of all UK students who entered Oxford in 2017 attended state-run institutions. That had climbed to 68.2% by the previous year. In 2017, there were 64.1% of undergraduates from state schools at Cambridge. The percentage increased to 71.6% in 2021.
Approximately 7% of British children, who increase to 18% after the age of 16, attend private schools.
Universities in Oxford and Cambridge both defended their admissions evaluation procedures.
‘A major factor to consider is that applications to Cambridge and Oxford have increased significantly over the last few years, as state schools have gotten better at preparing their students for the application process and delivered improved A-level grades,’ a spokesman for Cambridge University said. The competition is much higher now because there are six applicants for each opening.
Oxford University did not respond to a request for comment, but a source claimed: “Oxford invests substantial effort into evaluating candidates on their individual merits and constructing an admissions process that finds potential from all backgrounds and independent of situation.”