Leading Universities Urged to Take No More Than 10% of Students From Private Schools
In the United Kingdom, a proposal has been made to reduce the quotas allocated for private school students to enhance social mobility and improve access to elite professions.
Sociology professors Aaron Reeves and Sam Friedman from the London School of Economics, in their new book Born to Rule, highlight that students from prestigious private schools like Eton and Winchester are disproportionately represented at leading universities such as Oxford, Cambridge, and others. They suggest that these universities should reduce the intake of undergraduate students from private schools to a fairer rate of 10% each year. According to Friedman, the proportion of private school graduates at universities such as Oxford, Durham, and Cambridge is around 30%. He argues that students from prestigious private schools are 52 times more likely to reach elite positions in society compared to those attending other schools when they study at top universities.
Reeves and Friedman also propose that leading universities implement an open lottery system for all students from state schools who meet the required entry qualifications to increase geographical diversity and balance application and admission trends from London and the southeast of England. Reeves points out, “Oxford and Cambridge, particularly Russell Group universities, serve as a conveyor belt for access to elite positions,” highlighting the critical role these universities play in directing their graduates to elite positions.
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