The University of Oxford has announced its new Access and Participation Plan (APP) which aims to reduce gaps in educational attainment between differently privileged students and to reduce barriers to entry for undergraduate students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
The APP will operate from 2025 to 2029 and aims, in part, to “expand the range of summative assessment available to departments”, giving departments the scope to move beyond traditional exam formats. The expansion of assessment options has received backlash in the national media, with former Prime Minister and Oxford alumnus Liz Truss calling the reforms “nonsense”.
Speculation in The Telegraph alleges that this ‘expansion’ will entail less rigorous exams or coursework instead of collections. However, aside from focusing on inclusivity and the provision of reasonable adjustments, it is unclear from the initial report what assessment reform will actually amount to.
Aside from examination provisions, the university will spend £12.9m on programmes providing transitional support to incoming undergraduate students. This is in addition to the £3.3m spent on programmes designed specifically for black and other racially minoritised students.
The university will also continue to fund sector-leading access programmes, such as UNIQ, which offers application support and residential places to disadvantaged school pupils from under-represented backgrounds at Oxford.
The APP pays a particular focus to black, socio-economically disadvantaged, and disabled students. As part of these measures, the university hopes to guarantee that 94% of students from black, disabled, and free-school-meal backgrounds will receive a 2:1 or above. The plan also aims to increase the proportion of undergraduate entrants who received free school meals to 10.7%. In the UK, a child can be offered free school meals if their parents are recipients of various income supports, depending on their local council.
At Oxford, 81% of black students achieved at least a 2:1 in their degree compared to 95% of white students in 2021. The report acknowledges that “Black students are significantly less likely to be awarded a good degree than their white counterparts.” It suggests possible reasons for this could be an “intersection with socio-economic disadvantage” and also a “lack of ethnic diversity among University staff”, “under-representation in curricula and teaching”, and “racism”.
Universities are required to provide access and participation plans by the Office for Students (OfS), as stipulated by the Higher Education and Research Act 2017 and the Equality Act 2010. These plans must be approved by the OfS in order for universities to increase tuition fees in line with the government’s tuition fee cap of £9,535.
Compared to other UK universities, Oxford performs well in completion rates and attainment gaps between various student groups. However, access remains a problem with only 7.9% of Oxford entrants having received free school meals compared to the national average of 18.6% across UK higher education institutes.
A university spokesperson told Cherwell that: “In the coming years we will continue our access and outreach work to increase the number of students from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds admitted to Oxford, and will put in place additional measures as part of our ongoing programme of on course support with the aim of supporting specific student cohorts to achieve good degree outcomes.”
On access and participation arrangements at Oxford, one JCR President told Cherwell: “The financial support offered for disadvantaged students, especially to fund work experience abroad, has transformed my university experience for the better.
“There is no doubt that Oxford should admit the most capable applicants regardless of background, but the root of the issue is inspiring such students to apply in the first place. I’m especially glad to see Oxford recognising this and targeting it directly with schemes like UNIQ.”
The Student Union told Cherwell: “Having played an active role in the development of the APP last year, we are pleased that the SU’s submission has been incorporated into the University’s plan, and we welcome the University’s ongoing work to improve access.
“Historically, like other universities, Oxford has not always met its APP targets. The SU has been clear that our priority should not just be around access, but enabling the success of all students whilst studying. We will continue to encourage and work alongside the University to ensure sufficient reflection takes place in order to meet future targets.”
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