Universities are trialling a new certificate giving a detailed breakdown of grades to graduates, which could eventually replace traditional degree classifications.

Students studying Biology, English, Accounting and Creative Art at eighteen universities across the UK are trialling the Higher Education Achievement Report (HEAR). Upon graduation, they will receive a report detailing their results in all modules, as well as a summary of other activities undertaken at university.

Currently almost two thirds of graduates achieve a first class or upper second class (2:1) degree, leading to complaints that it is difficult to distinguish between them. In 2008, for example, 95.8% of Oxford History finalists attained a 2:1 or a first class degree.

Oxford University is already taking its own steps towards giving graduates more information, working to provide full transcripts for those who started their courses from 2008. A spokesperson said that the university “will consider future developments carefully, in the light of the results of the pilot study.”

OUSU’s VP for Access and Academic Affairs, Jonny Medland, said that HEARs should only be used if they benefit students. “Any decision about further expanding Higher Education Achievement Reports will have to come after we see how trialling them has worked. Like any other University, Oxford should always be working to introduce fairer methods of assessment and to improve the student experience.”

The trial was prompted by the results of a wide-ranging investigation into the degree classification system by Professor Robert Burgess, Vice-Chancellor of Leicester University. His report’s recommendations were largely against a radical replacement system for the current honours degree classification, which is well-respected worldwide. However, it did call for a system which gave employers more information about graduates.

Aaron Porter, Vice President (Higher Education)of the NUS, welcomed the trial. “It is clear that the current degree classification system is no longer fit for purpose; students deserve a more detailed acknowledgment of their overall achievement from their time in higher education.”

Nehaal Bajwa, a Balliol PPE finalist, was concerned that a HEAR would cause too much focus on academic work. “There won’t be that 10% leeway between getting a 2:1 and a 2:2 as every percentage point will count for more.”

However, some students have questioned whether HEARs will help employers choose the right candidate. There are concerns that instead of making it easier for employers to judge candidates, HEARs will make the drawn-out recruitment process even less efficient. Currently many employers do not consider applications of graduates with a 2:2 or below.

Tom Nicholson, a finalist at Magdalen, said, “This no doubt delights those who are keen to see ex-poly hairdressing students become corporate lawyers, as it obfuscates traditional (and, dare I say, pretty indicative) associations between top grades at top universities and important career-related attributes, such as intelligence. In practice employers will still look for ways to come to snap judgements within whatever system one introduces – and they’ll still hire the same candidates.”

Balliol’s Nintendo bop on Saturday was cancelled as a result of students tampering with fire extinguishers.

The Dean called off the event as a disciplinary measure after several extinguishers on the main site were fiddled with. A total of five fire extinguishers have been damaged since the start of term. Three of the items were found on one staircase, and two on another.

Not all the fire extinguishers were actually set-off. One was discovered simply with its security tag, pin and dust cover removed. The damage could cost up to £350 to repair.

The Dean set a deadline of Friday of 5th week at 9am for someone to own up to damaging the fire extinguishers. When this deadline passed, the Dean sent out a further email cancelling the bop.

One Balliol student commented, “It’s a bit stupid that the whole college has to miss out on bops, which are mental fun, just because some muppet decided to be boring and tamper with fire extinguisher tags. Given that it’s either cancellation of bops or a blanket fine on the JCR, I think the former is fair, but still highly antisocial. The search for the sly one is on.”

Iain Large, Balliol’s JCR President, was supportive of college’s decision. “The Dean informed students on Thursday 5th week that the bop would be cancelled if no one came forward about setting off fire extinguishers. I had previously sent an email warning against the misuse of extinguishers, also stating that the bop was at risk. No one came forward, and so the bop was cancelled.

“I and the JCR committee have been entirely supportive of the Dean’s decision, which was one of the few options available to deterring this sort of behaviour. My reaction to the people responsible is far less sympathetic, as their childishness has put the JCR at risk of discipline in the first place, and damaged its reputation generally.”

Sebastian Fassam, Balliol’s Entz rep commented, “It was my responsibility to inform people that the bop was cancelled. It’s an unfortunate incident. People are quite annoyed about the bop being cancelled, but most people think it’s not an unjust punishment. At Balliol, we normally take pride that we can be trusted to do things on our own. We don’t have much CCTV, especially not in the corridors, but perhaps things will have to be alarmed in future.” He added, “I don’t think there’s any chance those responsible will own up.”

William Browne, another Entz rep added, “Sadly, those responsible clearly don’t care about the rest of the JCR as no-one owned up. The theme was Nintendo and now my Bowser outfit will have to stay in the wardrobe for another year.”

Large commented, “It is, of course, sad that everyone in the JCR had to suffer for one or two individuals’ idiocy, and even more sad that no-one felt prepared to come forward for the sake of everyone else. However, I am hopeful that this has highlighted the severity of the incident, encourage a bit more maturity, as well as preventing it from happening again.”

New College’s most famous attraction, the Mound, has been closed to students this week following a health and safety report.

Last Thursday Michael Burden, the New College Dean, sent an email to all students stating, “The College has received a routine health and safety report which has questioned the safety of the Mound steps. The College is considering how best to respond to the matters raised, but until a decision has been reached, the College has decided that Mound should be closed.”

The Mound is a square, four-sided hillock in the College’s Fellows’ Garden which rises around 10 metres high. Three of the sides are covered with dense shrubbery, while steep stone steps rise up the front side, leading to a paved area at the top which is hidden by trees from those below. It was built in the 1500s from the waste material left over from building work on the College, and once boasted cannon at the top.

However it was the steps, which are worn and very slippery when wet, that were criticised by the health and safety report commissioned by New College. The Dean told Cherwell that the report had “raised a number of questions” adding, “The College cannot see a quick or easy way to respond to these concerns, and while it is working out a strategy to deal with the matter, feels that it is in everyone’s best interests to close it.”

When asked how he planned to tackle students breaking the new rule he said, “The Dean does not deal in ‘sanctions’ per se, but will consider reported cases on their merits.”
Students of New College who climb the old city wall which runs around the College risk being sent down, and many were afraid that similar measures would be imposed for those found climbing the Mound.

Tom Scott, New College’s JCR President commented, “It’s hard to overstate the importance of the mound. It’s so much more than a loveable hill; it’s a part of who we are, a symbol of New College’s greatness. We hope this is resolved quickly.”

One Second Year, Jon Strang, said that he was outraged by the news. “This is ridiculous,” he said, “I love the mound! Health and safety has gone too far.”

The Mound has been the scene of many adventures for New Collegians. Aside from the traditional matriculation and graduation photographs, in the last year it has witnessed late-night romantic trysts, drinking society initiations and nudity, as those having performed exceptionally badly at pool in the College bar are forced to perform a trousers-down lap of the Mound.

A number of more dangerous incidents are also known to have taken place recently. One student broke a tooth falling down the side last year and two guests at a conference taking place in the College in September had to be taken to accident & emergency department following Mound-related injuries.

Tourists have never been allowed onto the Mound, but it is considered one of the main features of a tour of the College. Guides often tell the (untrue) story of how the Mound was constructed as a Aztec burial site, and show groups the game of ‘clapping at the Mound’, which involves standing in front of it and clapping, then listening as the Mound appears to clap back.

Steven McGlynn, the New College JCR Food, Housing and Amenities Rep, said that students should not be too concerned. “These reports happen all the time and they’re always slightly ridiculous. In the past they have even recommended that we put a chairlift up there to cater for any disabled students.”

A student at Oxford University was forced to pay £80 for dropping a match on the pavement as Oxford’s ‘Cleaner, Greener City Centre’ campaign has kicked off.

Demetrios Samouris, a postgraduate student at Magdalen, described the fine as “quite harsh” but admitted, “I can’t really be that angry. I do understand what they are doing and I guess all rubbish has to be treated equally, whether it is a matchstick or a sandwich wrapper.”

As part of the campaign to clean up the streets of Oxford, Environmental Enforcement officers from Oxford City Council, Street Wardens and Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) can issue on-the spot fines to anyone discovered dropping litter, throwing away cigarette butts or committing acts of graffiti. Failure to pay the fine can result in further fines of up to £2,500.

It is estimated that cleaning the city centre currently costs £1 million per year.

Councillor John Tanner, Board Member for the campaign commented, “Everyone’s getting together to make Oxford city centre even cleaner. We want people to stop dropping litter and make the city centre a no go area for litter, chewing gum and cigarette butts. No-one likes to see messy streets.”

Many students are in favour of the plans. “Initiatives like this help bring environmental action closer to home. They remind us that moving towards a safer, cleaner world isn’t just about polar bears, guilt or banner drops, but about protecting our communities and making them more pleasant to live in,” said one student.

Oliver Richards, a 2nd year St Anne’s undergraduate, thinks it is outrageous that the streets have been allowed to reach the situation they are in. “I think it is really important for the streets to be clean in Oxford. The reputation of the city is based around a prestigious University that attracts the best students; students who would be discouraged from applying should our city be covered in an elephantine amount of mess.”

The Oxford Pedestrians Association is also supporting the campaign. In their view, many people are put off walking the streets of Oxford due to the filthiness of the streets, harming local businesses.

Chairman of the group, Paul Cullen argues, “Litter on the streets is becoming a deterrent to some people to even go out.”

A spokesperson for the University of Oxford commented, “The University is aware of the Cleaner, Greener Oxford Campaign and is fully supportive of the City Council’s efforts to clean up Oxford. We urge all members of the University to dispose of their litter responsibly.”

Oxford University received a record number of applications this year, with the majority of additional hopefuls applying from the state sector.

The University received 17,085 applications, compared with 15,277 last year. The extra 1,808 included 1,110 more applicants from UK state schools than were received in 2008, with 399 more independent school and 299 more from other, mainly international, students.

Of the UK students that applied, 63.6% of the total were from state schools and 36.4% from independent schools.

Mike Nicholson, Director of Undergraduate Admissions at Oxford University was enthusiastic about the figures “This is great news. We have worked hard to ensure that all students with the potential to succeed at Oxford apply, regardless of their background. I believe we can now say that this work is beginning to bear fruit. We have had a 17% increase in state-educated applicants this year, which suggests that our efforts to challenge stereotypes and mythology about Oxford are having an impact.”

Jonny Medland’s OUSU’s VP for access and academic affairs agreed, “It’s great to see such a large increase in applications to Oxford for the second year in a row. The work which the university, colleges and the Target Schools campaign do is invaluable in breaking down myths about Oxford and hopefully our hard work is now being reflected in the numbers. Our work now needs to continue – these figures show we can make a difference and how important it is that student-led access schemes continue to enjoy the enthusiasm and dedication of current undergraduates here in Oxford.”

Nicholson added, “The increase in the number of highly qualified applicants does create challenges. But we are confident our rigorous selection process meets these challenges by using a range of measures to select the very best candidates from the very good.”

Carys Roberts, JCR access officer at University college, commented, “This year’s applications show that access should still be at the top of the university’s agenda, as despite a 63.6% rate of applications from the maintained sector, acceptance rates fail to reach a similar level every year. Oxford should be doing more to improve the acceptance rate, but this does not necessarily have to amount to social engineering. Candidates from the independent sector are often at an advantage at interview because they are used to similar situations, know what to expect and have experience of demonstrating their argumentation abilities.”

Daniel Webb, a student at Worcester College added that state school applicants might be deterred from applying due to stereotypical perceptions of Oxford. “Despite the application statistics, my personal experience in visiting state schools shows that certain myths which put them off Oxford still prevail. These myths seem to be self-perpetuating, partly through the media, and therefore I think Oxford will always have a social responsibility to dispel them. To this end, Worcester College regularly goes on school visits as well as regularly welcoming schools for tours with question and answer sessions; it also participates in the FE Access Initiative.”

Joe Staines, Jesus JCR’s access and careers officer, argued that there was still more work to be done, “The University does a lot of good outreach, but could of course be doing more. The principal difference seems to stem from a greater expectation for Oxbridge applications at independent schools, so the impetus is really with state schools in that respect, and comes from a wider problem of insufficient provision for talented young people.”

The Iranian Embassy has accused Oxford University of a “politically motivated move” in the creation of a Queen’s College scholarship made in memory of Neda Agha-Soltan, an Iranian student killed in Tehran in post-election protests earlier this year.

In a letter sent to The Provost of Queen’s College, Paul Madden, Iranian authorities condemned the creation of the Graduate Scholarship in Philosophy because, they argue, in using Agha-Soltan’s name the University appears to be making a political statement.

Neda Agha-Soltan, a 27-year-old Iranian philosophy student, was killed in Tehran on 20 June during the protests over the outcome of the 2009 Iranian presidential election. Queen’s College set up a scholarship in her name after two donations which would provide the amount of money required to pay the graduate fee. Currently a student studying the Philosophy of Physics has the scholarship.

The


name “Agha-Soltan” has become a political symbol since the summer’s election violence. Her death was caught on camera and spread amongst the world’s media. It has become an important example amongst those who accuse the current Iranian regime of repression during the post-election rioting. Many Iranian bloggers refer to Agha-Soltan as the “angel of freedom”.

The Iranian authorities insist the student’s death took place far from the scene of the protests and are angry that the University might be seen to be endorsing protest against their regime.

In a press release with the scholarship’s announcement, college authorities did not refer to any political dimension in its creation saying, “Oxford is increasingly losing out to its competitors in the race to recruit top graduate students. Donations such as those that have enabled us to create the Neda Agha-Soltan Scholarship are absolutely vital for us to continue to attract and retain the best young minds.”

The Provost of Queen’s College, Professor Paul Madden added, “The college is keen to support graduate students, and this scholarship will help Iranian students to study at Oxford, regardless of their financial background. Donors make their own decisions, within reason, on how to name scholarships that they fund. In this case, the donor who was instrumental in establishing the scholarship is a British citizen and is well known to the college.”

The letter sent by Iran to the College is reported to have further said, “The involvement of the university in Iran’s internal affairs, particularly in the country’s post-election events of which the British media played a leading role, would lead to the loss of the university’s scientific prestige and academic goals.”

The University of Oxford has stated, “The Chancellor of the University has not received a letter from the Iranian Embassy. This is a college matter and, since Oxford colleges are autonomous, did not involve the University at any stage.”

Oxford University Student Union has condemned the ‘Doctors and Nurses’ pub-crawl planned by Carnage UK in Oxford later this week.

During Tuesday’s council, OUSU added its voice to the national criticism of the events company. The motion passed described the Thursday night event as posing “a real danger to students’ health and wellbeing” and “a serious threat to already fragile relations between students and the permanent residents of Oxford.”

Dani Quinn, OUSU VP for Welfare and Equal Opportunities, further argued that some of the planned Carnage activities such as getting “a naughty nurse check-up” were “degrading and sexist”.

OUSU is unable to stop the ‘Doctors and Nurses’ pub-crawl. However, the Student Union is calling on JCRs and MCRs to not promote the event to their members.

The OUSU motion comes at a time of national furore around Carnage UK following the conviction of a Sheffield University student after he urinated on a war memorial at the end of a Carnage night.

District Judge Anthony Brown suggested that the company should take some responsibility for the act saying, “Carnage was the name of the organisation that promote this type of activity and some might say someone should be standing alongside you this morning.”

Since the judge’s comments, National Union of Students has called to stop Carnage at universities. 17 student unions across the country banned Carnage events.

Richard Budden, Vice-President of the National Union of Students, has warned that “there is an acute and real danger to students who get caught up with these nights, not to mention the danger to members of the local population.”

Student opinion at Oxford is mixed, with many students in support of the comany. Tim Wigmore, an undergraduate at Trinity College, believes that “as Carnage runs around 50 nights per year, it would be unfair to generalise about their events based on one isolated incident.”

William Richardson of Somerville College supports this view, claiming that “whilst the depraved actions of an individual have been singled out and highlighted, Carnage cannot be held responsible as the overwhelming majority of students who take part in their events do not act in such a manner.”

However another student has argued, “Although students themselves are responsible for their actions, Carnage events almost certainly encourage binge drinking amongst students.”

Carnage UK regularly organises events in Oxford. Last year, the company ran a ‘dirty porn star’ fancy dress event in Oxford, which involved visiting six bars before the club event at Lava & Ignite.

Inspector Matt Bullivant of Thames Valley Police pointed out that previous Oxford events “have passed off without any significant incidents occurring”, claiming that “there is a greater understanding among Oxford’s student body of the potential ramifications of their actions should they become embroiled in any incidents similar to those we have seen in Sheffield in recent weeks.”