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10 February 2014, WEEK 4
LGBTQ mONTH FEATURE SPECIAL: is Bisexuality underrepresented? Comment
Fracking: the issue of our generation Page 11
Science
One step closer to personalised medicine Page 12
Technology
The Badger introduces Jordan Ellis as our new Technology Editor Page 5
Arts
The Arts team bring you the spring culture guide Page Page14 3
Sports
Victory over Brighton for women’s basketball Page 20
University of Sussex: Making you an offer you can’t refuse As 15% of UCAS offers become ‘unconditional’, The Badger questions whether the University is having to entice students to accept offers after a tumble down the league tables
Jack Williams News Editor High volumes of A-level students are being accepted unconditionally onto courses at the University of Sussex before having taken their A2 exams in return for making the University their first preference, The Badger has learned In letters sent out to students identified as “exceptionally strong applicants”, University administrators sought to persuade Sussex hopefuls to select the University as their firm choice by offering to revise their conditional offers to unconditional ones. Providing further incentive for applicants, the letter cited that the recipient could potentially be eligible for the Sussex Excellence Scholarship - worth up to £3000 - which includes a £50 per week discount for on campus accommodation rent, should the student attain AAA in their final A-level grades. An extract from the letter reads: “We have carefully reviewed all applicants and selected the very best students for the Sussex Unconditional Offer Scheme. “You have been identified as an exceptionally strong applicant and, on this basis, we have decided to make you a revised offer.” The Sussex Unconditional Offer Scheme looks set to target students whose AS level grades match the entry requirements of their chosen course, in a bid to nullify competition from other Universities to recruit the highest calibre applicants. Statistics obtained by The Badger suggest that approximately 15 percent of all those that were given conditional offers have been selected for the Sussex Unconditional offer scheme; a
total of 1,200 students overall. Outlining the reasoning behind singling out a particular mass of students for the scheme, A University spokesman explained that these students had: “shown exceptional academic performance to date and are expecting to achieve excellent results in their forthcoming examinations”. The University denied that they rewarded unconditional offers to Sussex applicants arbitrarily without carefully analysing each individual’s recent academic performance, but explained that they were only considering those who come across as the “most academically gifted undergraduate applicants”. The spokesman continued: “Where applicants have taken AS levels we will obviously be looking closely at those AS results. To be selected for the scheme, applicants will need to have achieved very high grades in those AS levels. “In selecting applicants for the scheme, we are looking at the full application, but the key element is actual evidence of very strong academic performance”. Sheffield Hallam University appears to be adopting a similar approach to The University of Sussex, with multiple college students reporting that their offer had been unexpectedly changed from conditional to unconditional. One student received an e-mail from the University of Hallam stating: “We believe you will thrive and succeed at Sheffield Hallam and are really keen that you select us as your firm choice. Therefore, if you make Sheffield Hallam your firm choice of University, we will waive the academic conditions of your offer, meaning that your place with us in guaranteed.”
Russell Group Universities including Queen Mary and The University of Birmingham, as well as Leicester University, formerly of the 1994 Group, are other universities running parallel schemes. Dozens of jubilant students took to Twitter to express their joy at their offer being upgraded. Ben Crossfield tweeted: “Offer from Sussex changed to unconditional… hahaha bubye A levels”, while Tamara Dasht tweeted: “Sussex made their offer unconditional, and they wanna give me £3000 to make my rent cheaper, they do know how to tempt a girl”. Jessie Sun, who applied to study Media and Communications at the University of Sussex, revealed that she had only received the letter last week,
a full month after completing her application. She said: “it was only a month or so after my application had been sent off that I received the letter informing me of the changes to my offer if I changed it to my firm choice. “I was really delighted at the chance of an unconditional offer, but at the same time, it’s made it a lot harder for me to narrow down my choices… I’m going to have to go back to square one and look at all the pros and cons of all my choices”. Another applicant, who had whittled his preferences down to University of East Anglia and The University of Sussex, admitted that receiving the unconditional offer was the clinching factor in deciding to opt for Sussex. “I was deciding between Sussex and
UEA as my first choice. I was going to visit the areas before making my final decision but the unconditional offer has meant I have decided to go with Sussex”, he said. “Overall I am very pleased with the revised offer as it means I can be relaxed when it comes to results day knowing whatever grades I get I will be going to the University of my choosing.” Following the announcement last year by George Osborne, Chancellor of the Exchequer, that caps on the number of student that Universities can admit are to be abolished in 2015, English Higher Education institutions now have limitless license to expand their student populations however they see fit. The Badger continues to investigate.