Universities: Admissions

(asked on 22nd June 2022) - View Source

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department is taking steps to provide additional support to universities in preparation for A-Level results day in 2022.


Answered by
Michelle Donelan Portrait
Michelle Donelan
Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
This question was answered on 1st July 2022

I will continue to work closely with the higher education (HE) sector to support the 2022 intake of students to ensure they can go on to their next step in life following A level and T Level Results day on 18 August, whether that’s university, on-the-job training, moving into employment or continuing to study elsewhere.

In November 2021 I wrote to Vice Chancellors to recognise the hard work and dedication that the sector has shown to students throughout the last 2 admissions cycles, and to ask that they build additional resilience into their offer making strategies for the 2022 HE admissions cycle. I have also engaged HE sector bodies through the HE Taskforce to commend them on their efforts to date and to ask that they continue to put students first through the 2022 admissions cycle.

Furthermore, the department, in collaboration with Ofqual, has actively engaged with and sought the views of the HE sector in shaping the decisions for the 2022 exam series for AS and A levels and vocational and technical qualifications. We have put a package of measures in place to ensure that students can take their exams fairly to recognise the disruption that this year’s students have faced.

In addition, this summer Ofqual will ask exam boards to set grade boundaries in a way that avoids disadvantaging some students who might otherwise have just missed out on a higher grade. This means that overall 2022 results are very likely to be stronger than in 2019, but lower than we saw in 2021. This package of adaptations, combined with Ofqual’s approach to grading, provides unprecedented support to maximise fairness and help students reach their potential.

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