Guardian and Observer letters on Oxbridge links with private schools

Of course, "cultural institutions should have some principles", but there can be little surprise that Oxford University is going to set up a "predator-funded ethics centre" with the £150m donation from  financier, Stephen Schwarzman (Ethics fly out of the window at Oxford when big donors come calling, 23.06.19). It is well documented how the university, just like Cambridge, has failed to introduce a contextual admissions policy which would increase diversity among undergraduates, offer more opportunities to students from northern and working class backgrounds, and decrease the domination of students from private schools.

     Instead, the links between independent  schools and Oxbridge remain as strong as ever, with  Cambridge Assessment`s lightly-regulated Pre-U examinations, marked and set mostly by teachers in private schools, and with a higher proportion of top grades, being increasingly accepted as entry qualifications. A Freedom of Information request recently revealed that in Oxford and Cambridge universities, in the academic year 2017-18,there were 125 undergraduates with three or more Pre-U qualifications but no A-levels, and 1075 students with a combination of three or more A-level and Pre-U qualifications. Whatever happened to Gove`s insistence on more "rigour"?

    Rather than adopting a more "ethical" policy regarding admissions, it would appear the opposite may be happening, so one of our top universities accepting a massive gift of dubiously-acquired money should astonish no-one. Vice-chancellor Richardson claims that Oxford`s "judginess" has been left behind, but only, it would appear, when it comes to money!

What should be worrying politicians and everyone concerned about our decreasing social mobility is not that there exists a "pipeline from fee-paying schools through Oxbridge and into top jobs", but that the "pipeline" is being enlarged (Privately educated people retain grip on elite jobs, 25/06/19). With the increased use in independent schools of Cambridge Assessment`s lightly regulated Pre-U examinations instead of the newly-reformed and more rigorous A-levels, privately educated pupils have increased their chances of being accepted into our "top" universities.

A Freedom of Information request recently revealed that in Oxford and Cambridge universities, in the academic year 2017-18,there were 125 undergraduates with three or more Pre-U qualifications but no A-levels, and 1075 students with a combination of three or more A-level and Pre-U qualifications. What chance do our brightest pupils from underprivileged backgrounds and underfunded schools have when trying to compete with pupils using a different and perhaps more generous route into university for university places?