University admissions

The Russell Group will only need to revamp two A-level subject areas after a review said just minor changes were needed to most qualifications.

Fewer 18-year-olds and rise in BTECs could leave highly selective universities vulnerable, says Ucas chief

Quintin McKellar discusses clearing, post-qualifications applications and tuition fees

Universities are seeking alternatives to race-conscious admissions policy

The Russell Group has warned that private school pupils are more likely than state school counterparts to choose science and languages subjects at GCSE, which could give them an advantage in university entry.

High fees prove no object to demand, but student standards may invite scrutiny

Undergraduates ‘reproduce social inequality’, paper argues

The upturn in students accepted into university this year could disguise big falls at some institutions, a vice-chancellor has warned.

The number of students accepted on to university courses is up 9 per cent despite a fall in the number of top grades awarded at A level.

Oxford and Cambridge agreement could amount to breach of competition law, say experts

But data show that grades in each subject may be rather more equal

Will Michael Gove’s reform plans endanger the traditional values he seeks to promote? Jack Grove investigates

Students who apply to university after receiving their A-level results are almost twice as likely to be dissatisfied with their course, a survey says.

British universities may benefit from local clubs’ international exposure

Observers predict admissions turmoil as Russell Group members join clearing

The pass rate for Scottish Highers has risen again, while more Scottish students have also won places at universities or colleges in the country.

Three universities have joined a national scheme to help students from disadvantaged backgrounds to gain places at highly selective universities. 

Revamped IT systems are ready for admissions deluge, states Mary Curnock Cook

Jon Marcus asks whether British universities would be wise to emulate the US elite

A greater proportion of Asian and black state-school pupils are entering higher education than their white peers, according to data released today

The proportion of 18 year olds applying for non-European language degrees has fallen by more than a third in three years, according to new research

Offa data another blow to ministerial claims of ‘competitive pressure’

Paul Temple celebrates the report that widened access as never before

Ministers should focus more resources on explaining the student finance system to parents to avoid children being put off university by debt, a thinktank says

Girls are outperforming boys in the sciences but are still not choosing to take such subjects ahead of university, a study on vocational qualifications has found.

Students entering university from state schools perform better than expected when securing a job after graduation compared with the privately educated, a new report says.

Offa chief: £150m committed by universities now part of access agreements

Universities aim for credit at bank of mum and dad in high fees era

Dramatic falls in part-time and mature student numbers must be tackled to ensure people from poorer families have the chance to go to university, access head Les Ebdon has warned.

The Medical Schools Council has announced a project to widen participation in medicine and improve university selection processes in the subject.

The new chancellor of the University of South Wales tells David Matthews that the word deters poor pupils

The sector will be damaged if integrity in recruitment is lost, says Janet Graham

The National Scholarship Programme is to be cut by £100 million and made postgraduate-only, as part of savings announced in the coalition’s spending round.

A landmark case on the use of affirmative action in university admissions has ended up without a clear winner after a ruling by the US Supreme Court.

State school children from London and other cities in England are more likely to go on to university after A levels than those from more rural districts, new figures suggest.

THE Leadership and Management Awards charity IntoUniversity in vanguard of outreach

A firm grasp of written English and a passion for a chosen course subject are the most desired attributes in university applicants aside from exam grades, according to a survey of admissions officers, but their social background does not figure so highly.

The proportion of students entering Russell Group universities who are state-educated has fallen in the last decade, a report from a government commission on social mobility has said.

Only £21m of £130.5m scheme reaching student pockets, Hefce finds

Young people in care are not getting enough support or advice to help them reach higher education, a new study says.

Tuition fees major concern for schoolchildren, Sutton Trust discovers

Students at the University of Cambridge have written to an education minister attacking the government’s response to a petition against the plan to scrap AS levels.

Teenagers in one of London’s most deprived boroughs are to receive grants from their local authority to help them attend university.

Students who use a Btec qualification to progress to a degree are slightly more likely to gain employment than their counterparts who take A levels, but will be paid less per hour, research has found.

Universities should lower their entry tariff requirements for students born in August to reflect the lower achievement levels of children born in the summer, a new study suggests.

Andy Westwood and Martin Doel map a route between FE and HE

Details have been released about proposals to allow universities in England to win more undergraduate places if they can show they are recruiting strongly.

Students from ethnic minorities are less likely to be offered a place at a leading research-intensive university than white pupils with the same A-level grades, the UK’s admissions service has confirmed

Overseas students beat UK peers’ tariff scores on many courses, analysis suggests

New ‘ambassador’ aims to improve access to elite institutions

The proportion of young people accessing higher education hit a record high of 49 per cent as students scrambled to avoid last year’s tuition fee hikes, a new study says.

School pupils from poorer backgrounds could be contacted by the government to nudge them towards applying to university if they get good GCSE grades, David Willetts has said.

A rising proportion of university applicants will have vocational qualifications. The sector must respond, says Mary Curnock Cook

Do the data represent the failure of market research or are they the inevitable by-product of a broad curriculum?

Boys have been deterred from going to university more than girls in the first year of higher tuition charges, a new study by the Independent Commission on Fees says.

Watchdog ‘is not putting enough pressure’ on elite universities to widen participation, says report

Universities should seek inspiration from Germany when looking to involve business in their school outreach programmes.

Students from ethnic minorities are less likely to gain places at top universities than white pupils with the same A-level grades, a new study has claimed.

The University of Oxford is set to review its policy on postgraduate admissions after a college reached a settlement with an applicant who claimed it discriminated against poorer students.

Three-quarters of Russell Group universities are failing to meet benchmarks on numbers of state school pupils, according to new figures.