A* offers help state sector students to shine

The 2009/10 admissions round was the first since the University’s decision to adopt the A* A Level grade into its standard offer. 59.3% of successful Home applicants in this round came from state schools or colleges, an increase of 0.8 percentage-points on 2008/09 and a welcome continuation of the recent upward trend in this area.

99.5% of accepted A Level students in 2010 achieved at least three grade As, while 89% of successful applicants achieved A*AA or better. The University chose to include the A* grade in conditional offers in order to help identify the very brightest students from all backgrounds, after modelling showed that it would have no detrimental impact on widening access.

The figures also reveal a 5% increase in the number of mature students admitted, and an increase to 15% in the proportion of Home students admitted who declared themselves to be from a Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic background.

Dr Geoff Parks, Director of Admissions for the Cambridge Colleges, said:

“We’re pleased that our admissions trends remain positive, but are also conscious that there is no room for complacency. Our research shows that students from all types of UK schools and colleges do equally well here, so we must keep reinforcing the message that Cambridge is a welcoming and inclusive place. Any student from a state school or college with the ability to succeed at Cambridge should think seriously about applying this October.

“The goal of our admissions policy is to identify and admit the brightest and best prospective students, regardless of their backgrounds. Our decision to use the A* A Level grade in our conditional offers was part of our strategy of focussing admissions decisions on performance in public examinations, which our research has shown to be the best indicator of success at Cambridge. Many commentators predicted that using the A* would harm our goal of widening access to the University. Our own modelling showed that it would not, and these results speak for themselves.”

The University and Colleges invest significant time and resources in outreach activity which aims to help raise the attainment and aspiration of state school pupils, and those from under-represented and disadvantaged backgrounds. Events include Challenge Days for pre-GCSE pupils, summer schools and subject masterclasses for older students, events tailored to the needs of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic students, and events targeted at mature students and care leavers. The University also organises free events for teachers and HE advisers working in the state sector to equip them with up-to-date knowledge on the applications process.

In its Access Agreement, currently being considered by the Office for Fair Access, the University commits itself to three challenging but realistic targets on widening participation. They are:

to increase the proportion of UK resident students admitted from UK state sector schools and colleges so that they fall within a range of 61 to 63%, which reflects the proportion nationally attaining exam grades in subject combinations which match the University’s current intake;
 

to meet HESA benchmarks on retention, ensuring that the University continues to have one of the lowest drop-out rates of any UK Higher Education Institution; and
 

to provide a minimum of 400 Year 12 places on summer schools at the University per year for the next five years, making the Cambridge summer schools programme one of the largest and most ambitious in the UK.

In addition, from 2012 the University will offer one of the most extensive and flexible packages of financial support in the UK in order to ensure that financial concerns should not deter any prospective student from making an application. In particular students will be able to choose whether they wish to take financial support in the form of a fee waiver or a maintenance bursary, allowing them to tailor support to their own needs.