The University of Oxford has confirmed that both the Geography Admission Test (GAT) and the English Literature Admissions Test (ELAT), which took place on 19 October, will not be used to shortlist candidates this year. The University has also confirmed that students who sat Maths the Admissions Test (MAT) will have the option to take a supplementary test. These decisions come in response to technical errors in the new online tests.
Earlier this year the University unveiled their plan to digitalise all but two of its admissions tests (the Thinking Skills Assessment and the Biomedical Admissions Test), aiming to “transform the paper-based testing environment typically still found in educational settings.”
The task was entrusted to TATA Consulting Services (TCS iON), one of India’s largest companies and a leader in the UK IT service industry. Following the announcement of the deal, TCS iON’s Global Head, Venguswamy Ramaswamy, said: “We are excited to bring our expertise in working with the University of Oxford, one of the biggest names in education, to make digital assessment possible for its admissions tests.”
The ELAT consists of six passages of text, all of which are united by a common theme. Students report sitting in exam conditions for up to an hour waiting for the passages to load. Applicants were further confused when the test asked for the passages to be considered in relation to the theme of the previous year’s paper.
In an email to candidates, the Director of Undergraduate Admissions for the Faculty of English, David Taylor, wrote that “the clear errors in the test’s rubric (which gave last year’s theme of ‘sleep’ rather than this year’s theme of ‘the moon’) are unacceptable. They caused stress and confusion for talented young people for which we are truly sorry.”
One student told Cherwell: “these issues really threw me off and I felt so disappointed with what I wrote.”
On 20 October, the University announced that “this year, ELAT scores will not be used in any formal shortlisting calculation. No candidate will be deselected (i.e. not shortlisted) on the basis of their ELAT score.”
Applicants also had difficulty accessing other online tests, such as the Maths Aptitude Test (MAT).
The Oxford University Mathematics department issued a statement on behalf of the Mathematical Institute, apologising for the “widespread distress and difficulties” experienced by prospective maths students who took the MAT.”
Students describe taking up to five hours to complete the MAT as a result of glitches in the new system.
Unlike the ELAT, the Mathematical Institute will be offering a supplementary test for students who were unhappy with their performance on the MAT – whereas the marks of the ELAT will simply be discounted from the application process. According to the statement, “the majority of candidates experienced no disruption – we do not want to disadvantage those candidates” and so the second test will be optional and the scores of the original MAT will still be taken into consideration.
The supplementary MAT will take place on 14 November at 9am. The additional test will be administered entirely by Oxford University.
The University told Cherwell: “We understand the difficulty and disappointment some UK students have experienced because of technical problems with online admissions tests run by a new provider, and we are very grateful to the students and their teachers for their patience and feedback.
“Tests are only one part of the admissions process and we will use a range of information, including candidates’ individual circumstances, to help us assess their potential and ensure no-one is disadvantaged by these events.
“We will be having further talks with the provider to understand better why these problems occurred with their systems and obtain assurances that there will be no repeat.”
