Higher Grades Schools Why A*s win
Ranald Michie, Professor of History at Durham University, explains why he is asking for higher grades at A level
B
eginning with this admissions cycle, the Department of History at Durham University
is asking for an A* in History. Why have we done this? One answer lies in the balance between supply and demand. For entry in October 2011 we had 138 places available but received around 1,500 applications. Unlike either Oxford or Cambridge, applicants can name Durham as one of their choices along with every other university. As a result Durham receives applications from those who have applied to both Oxford and Cambridge as well as from those who have not named either of those universities. The result is a large number of highly qualified applicants and this poses a real problem for admissions tutors. Given the number of staff we have, numbering around 30 in the History Department, and the pressure to pursue top flight research and high level teaching, there is no way we can interview these applicants, read submitted work or conduct our own assessments. Thus A-level grades provide one measure we can use to distinguish the exceptional from the excellent among those who apply. As we already asked for 3 As at A level, and require one of them to be in History, the use of a grade above an A has obvious attractions for us. Despite that, we did not rush to
make use of the A* grade in History. Instead, the decision was only taken late in this academic year and then only after considerable discussion among all members of staff. Even then there was no unanimity on the move to the A* as we were not certain that achieving an A* provides a reliable guide to future potential. Clearly there is a correlation between excellent A-level results and excellent degree results with virtually all Durham History
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students now graduating with a First or Upper Second. However, the class of degree that a student obtains depends on far more than the A-level grades they entered with. So much depends upon what a student does while at university and whether they prioritise academic success over all the other opportunities that university offers. In a career at Durham University, spanning over 35 years, I have known many students
possibilities open to them. It is the rare student who can obtain a First in History and captain England at rugby and I have only known one! It is for those reasons that
admissions tutors in History have retained the right to make 3 As offers in those cases where it appears justified, having carefully read the UCAS form. There are two pieces of
information which are scrutinised for what they reveal about an applicant, beyond the grades already obtained and the forecasts made. One is the reference from the school. These can be amazingly revealing as they put the school and the candidate in context. The other is the personal statement which is read as if it was a job application. The thoughts that are foremost
who did not obtain First Class degrees who then went on to excel in so many different walks of life because of the social, sporting, creative, administrative and other skills acquired while studying for a History degree. What students get out of university cannot be measured only by the degree that they obtain. At Durham I like to think that what we deliver to students can be summed up by a phrase of my own. “Proud of our past, fashioning your future.” In History we are incredibly fortunate that the students we admit are so highly talented that academic achievement is only one of the
There
was no unanimity on the move to the A* as we were not
certain that achieving A* is a reliable guide to future potential
in the admissions tutor’s mind include such questions as does this candidate really want to study History at Durham; can we provide what they are looking for; what is it they can offer beyond A level; what type of person are they; where do they think they are going, and why are they special? It is only after reading the whole form that the decision is made on whether to make an offer or not. If an offer is to be made then the question of whether to ask for an A* in History arises. For some candidates it will be an obvious choice to make as they should obtain it anyway, and so being required to do so will not influence the decisions that they make. Not asking for it might make them doubt the quality of the department and the university to which they have applied. For others with great potential an
offer including an A* may discourage them from accepting it and so 3As will be asked for. These will be difficult judgments for admissions tutors. Only in August 2012 will we know if we have got them right.
Autumn 2011 FirstEleven 21
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