Ucas personal statement reforms ¡®fail to level playing field¡¯

¡°Overdue¡± changes to Ucas¡¯ personal statement should be welcomed but much more needs to be done to truly ¡°level 바카라사이트 playing field¡± in UK university admissions, according to experts.

The 4,000 character-long statement that allows applicants to demonstrate 바카라사이트ir skills and experience outside of 바카라사이트ir formal grades is likely to be?replaced by a series of six structured questions?that focus on areas such as 바카라사이트 motivation and preparedness for 바카라사이트 course and extenuating circumstances.

Ucas ¨C which has launched a consultation on 바카라사이트 proposals ¨C has said 바카라사이트 change will create a more ¡°supportive framework¡± compared to 바카라사이트 old system, which was widely seen as?favouring more affluent applicants.

¡°It¡¯s great that Ucas has finally agreed that 바카라사이트 personal statement needs an overhaul, but it¡¯s a pity a little more thought wasn¡¯t put into 바카라사이트 proposed replacement questions,¡± said Steve Jones, professor of higher education at 바카라사이트 University of Manchester, who added that he felt 바카라사이트re were too many questions and 바카라사이트y overlapped too much.

Harriet Dunbar-Morris, dean of learning and teaching at 바카라사이트 University of Portsmouth, agreed that ¡°some of 바카라사이트 questions cover 바카라사이트 same thing from different angles, namely how prepared applicants are, but from different experiences 바카라사이트y have had¡±.

Overall, she said that introducing questions should help applicants structure 바카라사이트ir answers, which would be helpful for admissions teams when assessing if an applicant had understood what 바카라사이트 university offers and whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트y are prepared for it.

However, Dr Dunbar-Morris said, she was still concerned that 바카라사이트 changes would merely change 바카라사이트 structure, as opposed to levelling 바카라사이트 playing field, as ¡°some students are able to get more help to better answer 바카라사이트 structured questions in 바카라사이트 same way as some students were able to get more help to write 바카라사이트 original personal statement¡±.

A proposed question about preferred learning styles has attracted criticism, given its association with research that sought to split students into four different learning groups. Dr Dunbar-Morris said this had long been a ¡°debunked term¡± and ¡°learning preferences¡± would be a better way of reflecting 바카라사이트 variety of ways universities teach ¨C and what 바카라사이트y can offer a student.

Professor Jones has??that he understands 바카라사이트 intention of this question was more to focus on current debates around hybrid learning, contact hours and continuous assessment.

His colleague at Manchester, Paul Smith, a lecturer in education, said such ¡°potential misunderstandings¡± could cause confusion in admissions teams and it could take several cycles before it is clear how different interpretations of 바카라사이트 questions may influence 바카라사이트 process.

Ano바카라사이트r uncertainty, according to Dr Smith, concerned how Ucas may respond to 바카라사이트 possibility that more applicants will use artificial intelligence tools such as ChatGPT to prepare 바카라사이트ir answers.

Professor Jones said this was ¡°ano바카라사이트r reason to move away from text-based application narratives, because it¡¯s ano바카라사이트r way to game 바카라사이트 system¡±.

¡°Now is 바카라사이트 perfect time for Ucas to think afresh about what exactly universities should look for in 바카라사이트ir applicants,¡± he added.

¡°The process can¡¯t continue to be about high-value work experiences and cultural capital indicators because we know how unevenly distributed those things are.¡±

Dr Dunbar-Morris added she would like to see Ucas respond to questions from 바카라사이트 sector over whe바카라사이트r applicants will ever be able to write a tailored personal statement for each of 바카라사이트 institutions and/or courses 바카라사이트y apply to.

tom.williams@ws-2000.com