The Sutton Trust:
Rules of the game
19 December 2017
Article by Gill Wyness
Rules of the Game analyses the university admissions process in the UK and looks at whether it may be a potential driver of the access gap. This is an area that is surprisingly under-researched, given that the pursuit of ‘fair access’ for students into the most selective universities remains high on the policy agenda. Authored by Gill Wyness, the report discusses how the UK’s admissions process is highly centralised, complex, time consuming, and requires young people to make potentially life-changing decisions far in advance of university entry. Many of the elements of this process may put students from poorer backgrounds at a disadvantage.
Related publications
‘The Rules of the Game’, Gill Wyness, Sutton Trust Report, December 2017
https://www.suttontrust.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Rules-of-the-Game.pdf
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Youth Employment UK
Rules of the game – Sutton Trust Report
The Sutton Trust have today launched their Rules of the Game report, the report suggests that the brightest disadvantaged students are losing out by basing decisions on predicted grades rather than on achieved grades. The report, Rules of the Game, by Dr Gill Wyness, Senior Lecturer in Economics of Education at the UCL Institute of Education, says that the admission process itself may be responsible for the fact that the most advantaged applicants were six times more likely to get into selective universities than the most disadvantaged in 2016.
https://www.youthemployment.org.uk/rules-game-sutton-trust-report/?platform=hootsuite
HM Government – Dods Information Monitoring
Sutton Trust - admissions
Commenting on the publication of a new report by the Sutton Trust on access to university for disadvantaged students, Russell Group head of policy Sarah Stevens said: "We are determined to ensure bright students from more disadvantaged backgrounds have the opportunity to study at a leading university. "The idea of moving to a post-qualification admissions system has been floated in the past but real concerns remain as to whether this would end up doing more harm than good to the prospects of disadvantaged high attainers. "In our view, the answer lies in helping this group of young people to better understand and navigate the university admissions process. That's why our members have created Advancing Access, a series of free online resources that recognise the vital role teachers play in supporting students, especially those from under-represented groups, to progress to university. This includes supporting students to write personal statements and to make university and course choices. Our Informed Choices guide is also providing invaluable advice to students about their post-16 subject choices so they have the best possible chance of gaining a place at the university and on the course that is right for them. " Russell Group universities have been using contextualised data for many years and we agree that the process needs to be clear and transparent. All of our members publish information about their contextualised admission policies and practices on their websites."
[No link]
Guardian
Disadvantaged students given lower predicted A-level grades, report says
Under the current university admissions system students make their applications based on A-level grades predicted by their teachers. If their predicted grades are low, they may end up applying for degree courses with lower entry requirements than those which they are capable of getting. The report says teachers tend to over-predict A-level grades partly in response to growing pressure from parents who push for grades at the top end of expectations. Disadvantaged students are also over-predicted. … The Rules of the Game report, by Gill Wyness, senior lecturer in the economics of education at the UCL Institute of Education, concludes there is a lack of transparency in the admissions process. “Universities are fluid in their approach to admissions, and put different weight on the predicted and achieved grades of students. They have different approaches to the use of contextual admissions and apply different criteria when analysing personal statements.
BBC News
Education: Poor students ‘lose on grade predictions’
University admissions would be fairer if students applied after they knew their A-level results, says a social mobility charity. The Sutton Trust says relying on predicted grades is working against talented, disadvantaged applicants. This summer, almost three-quarters of applicants in the UK failed to achieve the grades forecast by their schools. But the charity warns that poorer students are more likely to have their grades under-predicted. Report author Dr Gill Wyness said it was vital that "disadvantaged students are able to play the admissions game on the same terms as their better-off peers".
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-42401660
Mail online
Girls’ school bursaries for poorer families are shunned because parents fear daughters won’t fit in, says leading headmistress
University entry ‘rigged’
University admissions are rigged against poor students because they are more likely to be predicted unduly low grades, a report claims. The Sutton Trust says this means they can end up applying for degree courses with entry requirements of grades lower than they are capable of achieving. And the charity claimed disadvantaged students were less likely to be helped with personal statements. The study by Dr Gill Wyness of University College London found that, according to last year’s figures, the most advantaged applicants were six times more likely to go to a top university than the most disadvantaged. Sutton Trust chairman Sir Peter Lampl called for an overhaul of the system.