UCAS have decided that parents are to be overtly part of the university application process http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2008/aug/20/choosingadegree.clearing it strikes me this is a bad idea and will further disadvantage the disadvantaged. Disadvantaged students cannot draw on parental knowledge to significantly help them, as that knowledge isn’t there. Also, it won’t do any favours to those middle class kids who are being cajoled into doing what their parents want them to do. However, pushy parents are just the start in this process. I thought a report in the Times Higher of the 14th of August was interesting; it described how in the USA there has been a growth in the use of admissions consultants, with some 6% of applicants now using such services. Apparently, these consultants charge from around $100 to review a university application to $29,000 for fully supporting students and their parents when applying to top universities. Should the Brightside Trust get ahead of the game and offer this to disadvantaged students in the UK?
On the other hand, the happy widening participation news of the week is that Oxford University is to explicitly introduce social factors into its selection criteria, including postcode analysis of home address http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2008/aug/17/oxbridgeandelitism.highereducation?gusrc=rss&feed=networkfront
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Maybe we need to train our mentors to provide more help and focus on UCAS form support or additional activities to cover this area of need!
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