From Scotland comes the story of Jennifer Skrastin, who received top grades from a top private school but was nevetheless rejected by the University of Edinburgh.
The 17-year-old, now in the sixth form at private Lomond School in Helensburgh, initially thought nothing of the rejection. Slowly, however, the knockback began to weigh on her mind. After being turned down for a university course whose minimum entry requirements Edinburgh’s prospectus listed as four B grades, Skrastin wanted to know why she was ruled out. “It simply said ‘unsuccessful’ on the form,” she said.
When she and her parents made inquiries, however, the response from Edinburgh University was far from reassuring. It emerged that despite being described by an admissions officer as “an undoubtedly strong candidate” whose application and references were “difficult to find fault” with, she was refused entry because she attended a school where many pupils go on to university.
Offers had been made to pupils who achieved the same AAAAB higher grades but attended schools with “significantly lower progression rates into higher education,” a letter revealed.
According to The Scotsman’s education reporter,
Skrastin’s case exposes how high-achieving pupils from private schools are being discriminated against by universities anxious to comply with government attempts to place more pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds into elite higher education. Scotland on Sunday has uncovered a second case in which a private school pupil from Glasgow was also turned down by Edinburgh University, even though he got five A-grade Highers….
The letter sent by Edinburgh admissions staff told Skrastin they had offered places on the LLB (Bachelor of Laws) course to pupils with the same grades she achieved in her fifth year. But the successful applicants did not go to private schools.
The letter stated: “Most of these offers will be to students who have achieved AAAAB after S5 and who have attended schools with significantly lower progression rates into higher education.”
It was confirmation of a quota system that favours state school pupils. Skrastin was also told that the fact she was not the first member of her family to go to university counted against her.
Unlike the way preferences operate in the United States, the article does not assert that students from preferred schools with lower grades, etc., were admitted.
What I find interesting here in any event is not the University of Edinburgh’s diversity/quota policy — as far as I’m concerned universities are free to prefer public over private school graduates — but rather Ms. Skrastin’s response to what she learned:
Skrastin, who has now taken up a place to study law at Glasgow University, said: “It took me a wee while to get my head around it, but I was basically told that I didn’t get in because of the school I went to….
“It reminds me of the affirmative action policies used in America,” the teenager said. “Entrance to some universities seems to be turning into that kind of system. They want a certain number of people from a certain area to meet diversity quotas.”
American universities used to strive for a reputation for excellence. Now they strive for — and Ms. Skrastin’s opinion suggests they have succeeded in achieving — a reputation for “diversity.”
Many will think this is a positive development. Others of us don’t.
