A new university hierarchy?

By Matthew Oakman, Head of Sixth Form, Wellington College

For some students August 16 will bring tears of joy and happiness and results beyond expectations. These results should not be sullied by the constant reports that this generation have had it easy with constant module retakes and grade inflation – students can only play the hand they have been dealt. But for others it will be filled with despair and heartbreak; a lost opportunity and the difficulty of facing friends who have achieved their goal. Clearing will await them, or in some cases the unenviable option of further retakes and another Ucas application.

But this year offers better prospects to those who don’t fulfil their grade requirements than recent years. For one thing, university applications have seen a reduction for 2012 entry. This is in part due to the implementation of tuition fees and fears of graduating with mountains of debt, though students should remember that tuition fees represent about the most affordable and ultimately valuable loan that one could ever take. Another factor is demographic; there are just simply fewer 18 year-olds than in previous years – a trend that is set to continue for a few years.

A further, major factor has changed the university landscape: the relaxation of the number of students achieving AAB or higher (35+ Ucas points) that universities can recruit. It might not sound like much, but this will have both an immediate and long term effect on university admissions. A number of institutions have already sent letters to the Heads of Sixth Form at schools and colleges such as my own indicating that, for those students who have received at least AAB and haven’t secured a place, there will be more places available in Clearing than has previously been the case.

In the longer term, these changes will mean the creation of a more obviously tiered university hierarchy. A number of leading and vastly popular institutions – among them Bristol, Exeter and Newcastle – have already indicated they will be using the release of the AAB+ cap as a means to increase their student numbers over the next few years. Their aim (although they might deny this) will be to ensure that they have the best access to the brightest students, and thus also increase their revenue through tuition fees. But this will make it far more difficult for other institutions to recruit their desired intake over the coming years. Some may find it difficult to survive in their current guise.

And what will become of the Universities that are going to increase in numbers? Some have already been criticised for the lack of contact hours that are currently available – this is particularly the case in the humanities. They will soon find that the advent of tuition fees is changing the expectations of both students and their parents, who are now paying a considerable amount of money for an educational service. This will certainly lead to a more vocal debate over the issue of value for money.

Many pupils at Wellington College are now looking to America as a viable alternative to university in this country. Indeed 10% of our leaving cohort is going on to higher education outside of the UK. This is a trend that has shown rapid increase in the last few years and shows no signs of slowing down.

I would like to wish all of those students waiting expectantly for their exam results the very best of luck. All of your teachers, friends and families will only be too aware how hard you have worked. If it hasn’t quite gone to plan, be prepared come results day and you could still ensure acceptance to a leading university. All the best.

Matthew Oakman is Head of Sixth Form at Wellington College, Berkshire. Telegraph