Students lured with cash bribes

By Graeme Paton, Education Editor

Just days before the publication of A-level results, it emerged that institutions are going to extreme lengths to fill places through the traditional clearing system. 

One university is offering a scholarship under which fees are waived for three years, worth £27,000. 

University scholarships: 10 unusual student bursaries 

At least 30 universities are offering scholarships to the most able students — typically those with As and Bs at A-level — irrespective of their family income. 

Some are tempting undergraduates with free laptops, gym membership, cut-price places in halls of residence, access to high-profile professional speakers and cheap books and computer software. 

The trend follows the introduction of reforms giving universities power to recruit unlimited numbers of students with ABB grades or higher this year, while capping places for other candidates. 

The reforms are designed to create more competition between institutions and to allow the most sought-after universities to expand. 

One vice-chancellor said millions of pounds were at stake in the student recruitment market, forcing universities to use “very muscular tactics” to fill places. 

However, the tactics have prompted warnings that students were being attracted on the basis of “gimmicks or cash giveaways” instead of proper consideration of courses. 

Research suggests that most scholarships are offered by institutions outside the traditional elite, where competition for bright students is fiercest. 

They include Bedfordshire, Bradford, Coventry, Gloucestershire, City, Greenwich, Leeds Metropolitan, Northumbria, Roehampton, De Montfort, Salford, Sheffield Hallam, Derby, Edge Hill, Wol-verhampton and Worcester. 

Leading members of the elite Russell Group such as Leeds, Newcastle and Sheffield are also offering scholarships to bright candidates, although most awards are limited to certain courses. 

Simon Renton, president of the University and College Union, which represents lecturers, said: “Scholarships and bursaries should be used to extend access to poorer students, not to gain an edge in the competition for higher qualified students irrespective of family background. 

“Students should choose what suits them best academically, not on the basis of gimmicks or cash giveaways.” 

One of the most attractive packages is at Bedfordshire, where students with ABB grades can claim £3,000 a year provided they “maintain a 2:1 average”. The university is also awarding one “vice-chancellor’s scholarship” a year in each academic faculty, which is worth a total of £27,000. 

It also emerged that: 

• Newman University, Birmingham, is offering £10,000 over three years to full-time students who gain at least BBB or ABC at A-level. 

• Coventry provides £1,000 a year — or £1,500 annual discount on university accommodation — to ABB students. 

• City University, London, offers a sliding scale of awards, with those gaining A*AA and studying engineering and science courses handed £9,000 for a three-year degree. 

• Newcastle’s School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering offers scholarships of up to £2,000 a year plus the use of a laptop. 

• Surrey University promises £3,000 cash and free sports club membership to students with straight As. 

Prof Dominic Shellard, vice-chancellor of De Montfort University, said: “At many places, almost every student applying will be getting ABB, so it is a completely free market for student recruitment. 

"Millions of pounds are at stake, so universities will use some very muscular tactics to recruit students in clearing.”