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Monday December 6 2010 THE COURIER
News Editors: Simon Murphy and Charlie Oven
Have you got a news story for The Courier? Email us at: courier.news@ncl.ac.uk
University accused of cheating potential students by hiking entry requirements Brionny Bragg Universities have been accused of abusing the trust of potential applicants. This comes after many institutions raised their A-level entry requirements on numerous courses after the 2011 prospectuses had been published and students had begun submitting their applications. No fewer than 13 courses at Newcastle raised their entry requirements after the 2011 prospectus was distributed and, in five of these courses, applications had already opened. Many had applied in vain thinking that they could meet the requirements. The University itself has not broken any rules. Whilst entrance requirements are agreed at the time of printing, they are allowed to be changed according to the potential market and number of applications being received. Nevertheless, with the debate about proposed increases in fees hanging over sixth-form students’ shoulders, critics have argued it is callous for universities to be placing even more pressure on applicants. The competition for precious places is so intense at the moment, it appears the situation is not likely to be resolved in the near future, particularly with the prospect of the government slashing university funding by £915 million. Billy Flinn, of St Benedict’s High School in Cumbria, believed that universities should empathise with applicants in spite of demand for places. “I would agree to an extent that the changes to course requirements may be unavoidable due to the high volume of applications. Nevertheless, I feel the institutions should be more sympathetic towards the applications they’ve already received by giving applicants a chance to withdraw their application or change their UCAS form,” he said. Flinn added: “Alternatively, they should offer them the original requirements for the course they applied for via UCAS.” Newcastle University have failed to disclose to The Courier a list of courses where entry requirements were changed after the prospectus was issued.
Undergraduate applicants have their say: Caroline Reader – Carmel RC College, Darlington “The requirements shouldn’t go up as the University was willing to take on applicants with lower requirements only a year ago.”
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Comment Can’t do kettling: Are the police becoming too heavy handed with student protests? Join our debate Page 10
Lifestyle Do you want a body like Britney’s? We test out the best of the celebrity workouts to get you into shape Page 17
Culture It’s been 50 years since Coronation Street first graced our screens, in our TV highlight we look back at the best 50 moments Page 33
Sport Daley or David: The Courier reviews the 10 person short list for Sports Personality of the Year 2010 Page 38
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Celebration: graduation is a happy time for students and their families but some sixth-formers may never get the chance to attend university as grade boundaries are raised after undergraduate prospectuses are printed - 13 courses at Newcastle were found guilty of this
At York for Philosophy, Politics and Economics the requirements were changed from AAB to AAA. Manchester Metropolitan changed their Pharmacology requirements from ABB to AAB. A press statement released from Newcastle commented: “The popularity of Newcastle University meant that, for the 2010 entry, the number of high quality applications received was considerably higher than the previous year and we had
to take great care not to admit more students than our government quota would allow. “This year, our applications so far indicate that we will receive even more than last year. A small number of subject areas therefore reviewed their entrance requirements and increased grades slightly at the beginning of the UCAS cycle in September, in order to be able to manage numbers in a very buoyant market.”
With this in mind, students have been advised to take extra care in regularly checking their potential university’s website for any changes to the entry requirements which may have occurred. However, with a lot of students unaware of such activity taking place, many will be particularly disappointed by the changes after applying under one set of criteria to find they are being judged by another.
Stephanie Barker - Nunthorpe School, Middlesborough
Andrew Mooney - Dalziel School, Glasgow
Naomi Bragg - St Benedict’s High School, Cumbria
“With some students unaware of the grade requirements increasing, it seems really unfair for someone to be turned down having applied thinking they could meet the requirements, only for another with higher grades to then come and take their place.”
“It’s surprising as universities must have brought lots of hassle upon themselves with people emailing and phoning up to ask what has happened.”
“I believe they should have stuck with what requirements they put out in the first place. Instead students have been given false hope to attend a university that best suited them. This is a really stressful time to apply for university.”
Editorial Team: • Editor - Fran Infante • Deputy Editor - Joshua Shrimpton Dean • News Editors - Charlie Oven & Simon Murphy • Comment Editors - Danny Kielty & Laura Heads • Life & Style Editors - Mary Mullarkey and Kat Bishop •Fashion Editor - Lauren Girling • Arts Editor - Stephanie Ferrao • Film Editor - Adam Williams • Music Editors - Polly Randall & Joe Skrebels • TV & Radio Editor - Ellie Wilson and Lynsey Fawcett • Puzzles Editor - Andy Pitkeathley •Listings Editor - Ciara Littler • Sports Editors - Kat Bannon, Jono Taylor & Wills Robinson •Photo Editor - Briony Carlin • Design Editor - Helen Mamalaki • Online Editors - Aimee Philipson, Bethany Sissons, Katie Hicks, Elliot Bentley and Colin Henrys •Proof Editors - Charlotte Loftus, Katy Lawson, Hannah Davey, Verity Cunningham, Freya Marks, Gemma Farina, Jessica Cree, Amy Jordan, Ruby Hall, Rebecca Gee & Jennifer Beer The Courier is printed by: Harmsworth Printing Limited, Northcliffe House, Meadow Road, Derby, DE1 2DW. Tel: 01332 253013. Established in 1948, The Courier is the fully independent student newspaper of the Union Society at Newcastle University. The Courier is published weekly during term time, and is free of charge. The design, text, photographs and graphics are copyright of The Courier and its individual contributors. No parts of this newspaper may be reproduced without the prior permission of the editor. Any views expressed in this newspaper’s opinion pieces are those of the individual writing, and not of The Courier, the Union Society or Newcastle University.