GREAT APPLICATIONS ARE ABOUT MORE THAN GRADE EXPECTATIONS

  • 13 years ago
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University admissions officers reveal what makes applicants stand out

A passion for their chosen course subject; good written English; and a positive attitude towards study are the three key qualities that university admissions officers look for in university applicants’ personal statements and teachers’ references.

And, with good academic grades increasingly taken as a given, six in ten university admissions officers actively look for evidence of work experience; 58 per cent look to see whether the applicant has held positions of responsibility or leadership, or taken part in community or voluntary services; while two fifths of officers look for evidence of participation in sports or the performing arts.

With the new university application cycle now well underway and competition for places as fierce as ever, independent research conducted by ACS International Schools gives an insight into how applicants can make sure that their application stands out in the race for places and reveals some interesting differences of emphasis between different university mission groups:

Non-academic qualities sought by admissions officers

% Total Russell
Group
1994
Group
Million
Plus
University
Alliance
Other
Evidence of a passion for
thier chosen course subject
93 86 100 100 89 88
Good written English 93 86 100 100 89 88
Evidence of a positive attitude towards
study
88 86 100 100 78 75
Work experience 60 29 63 75 67 63
Having held any positions of responsibility
of leadership
58 43 88 63 44 50
Participation in community or voluntary
services
58 29 63 75 56 63
Evidence of time well spent on a gap year 55 71 63 50 44 50
Participation in sports 40 14 25 50 56 50
Participation in performing arts 40 14 25 63 67 25

The top three qualities looked for in addition to grades – `passion for their chosen subject’, `good written English’, and evidence of `a positive attitude towards study’ – were consistently ranked most highly across all university mission groups. However, other qualities sought by admissions staff reveal wide variation across the different university groups surveyed.

For example, just 29 per cent of Russell Group university admissions officers actively looked for work experience, compared to 75 per cent of Million Plus Group officers. And again, whilst participation in sports and performing arts was cited by just 14 per cent of the Russell Group sample, this figure was much higher in the University Alliance and Million Plus samples.

The importance of the student’s personal statement and teacher’s reference

Applicants’ opportunity to get evidence of these additional qualities and talents across rests largely on the personal statement they are required to submit and in the school/teacher’s reference that accompanies their application. The research asked the admissions officers to state which they placed greater emphasis on, the personal statement from the applicant or the school or teacher’s reference.

Emphasis given to student statements and school/teacher’s reference

% Total Russell
Group
1994
Group
Million
Plus
University
Alliance
Other
University
Both the same 48 29 38 39 67 63
Student personal statement 23 43 38 25 11
School or teacher's preference 13 13 38 11
Don't know 3 13
Can't say/refused 15 29 11 38

Results reveal that across all university groups, 48 per cent state that they give equal emphasis to each. However, amongst Russell Group universities, the emphasis falls more strongly on the student’s personal statement. Interestingly amongst the Million Plus universities greater emphasis was put on the school or teacher’s reference than on the student’s personal statement.

The value of a gap year

The gap year seems to be falling in favour amongst some university groups. When questioned about the value of the gap year (and the dilemma of `to gap or not to gap?’) the response was equivocal.

Value of gap year and difference between students who have taken a gap year and those who haven’t

% Total Russell
Group
1994
Group
Million
Plus
University
Alliance
Other
University
Yes value the gap year 53 71 50 39 67 39
See no difference 45 29 50 63 22 63
Not stated 3 11

Overall 53 per cent of UK admissions officers said that they value the gap year but 45 per cent cent reported that they saw no difference in the quality of applicants who had or had not taken a gap year before starting university.

However variation across the different groups was again wide, with a much higher percentage of the Russell Group sample, 71 per cent, valuing the gap year, compared to just 38 per cent of the Million Plus sample.

Thriving at university

University admissions officers went on to say that a `love of learning’ and the ability to `work independently’ were, in their opinion, the most important qualities that would help students to thrive at university. These attributes were rated over and above other qualities such as a clear idea about future career path.

When asked to rate these qualities across a range of post-16 examinations, admissions officers saw these qualities more strongly in evidence in the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma and the new Diploma than in A levels.

Fergus Rose, ACS International Schools, commented:

“Universities want to find the very best students and this now means looking beyond applicants’ predicted grades and at their passion for their chosen subject and their aptitude across a wide range of life skills. These research findings highlight the importance placed on personal statements and teachers’ references and also suggest that these broader aptitudes are more firmly embedded in the International Baccalaureate than in other qualifications – perhaps giving IB students that special blend of qualities that admissions officers are looking for.”

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