Why is there such a lack of diversity at Oxbridge?

Newly revealed figures show some Oxford and
Cambridge colleges admitted no black British students between 2012
and 2016

In Depth

Gyimah criticised the elite institutions’ poor diversity
records after newly released figures showed the extent of their
failure. According to statistics obtained by the Financial Times under a Freedom of Information
request, some Oxbridge colleges admitted no black British students,
or as few as one a year, between 2012 and 2016.

Oxford also recently released data showing that one in four of
its colleges had failed to admit a single black British student
between 2015 and 2017.

“Having been to Oxford as a black student, I think the
disappointment is that it was rare in my day 20 years ago, and it
is still rare,” Gyimah said.

“Given that universities have some of the brightest minds, the
very notion that they haven’t been able to work out how to attract
diverse, excellent students is extremely disappointing.
Universities have got to begin to live in the 21st century.”

Why does it happen?

Part of the problem is a lack of applications from black
students, which means the final number “who actually attend Oxford
is always likely to be very small, even if you leave aside any
question of bias or prejudice”, says Channel 4’s FactCheck blog.  

When asked why they thought admissions were so low, black
British students who had attended Oxbridge cited “the fear of
racism from other students, concerns around not fitting in, a lack
of support in applying, and insane competition for places”, says
Business Insider.

Cambridge student Timi Sotire told the website that she had
plenty of first-hand experience of everyday racism. Sotire said she
has encountered people who are unable to pronounce her name, had
her afro “petted”, and regularly heard the appropriation of black
slang.

“Unfortunately, this has all come from friends, and as the only
black person in my friendship group, sometimes I am one of the only
people defending my corner,” she said.

Young people from ethnic minority backgrounds told researchers
from Bath University’s Institute for Policy Research, who
compiled a table of ethnic compositions at UK
universities, that they were concerned about “feeling
uncomfortable or thought they might be stared at” if they went to
places with few other minorities.

There is also an “issue with black attainment”, Raph Mokades,
the founder of outreach programme Target Oxbridge, told Business
Insider.

“It’s not that there are no black people who are good enough to
go to Oxbridge; that’s not what’s happening,” Mokades said. “But
black people aren’t doing as well in their exams as say, Chinese
people or Indian people, who do better than white people too. It’s
not terrible, and it’s much better than it was in the past, but we
want more black kids getting As and A*s.”

Who’s to blame for the problem?

Gyimah believes that the onus is on the universities to “promote
admissions from state schools through broader outreach programmes,
as a high proportion of applicants still came from the elite feeder
schools where pupils were coached on how to get in from an early
age”, reports The Times.

However, universities such as Oxbridge “can only do so much to
counteract the effects of inequities within the education system
that are constantly screwing over black kids”, argues Olivia Hylton-Pennant, the Cambridge student union’s
access officer.

“We need more senior black figures working in education and
greater cohesion between these figures across the board,” she
tweeted.

Research suggests young people are segregated well before they
submit their university applications. Analysis from Demos in 2015 found that 61% of ethnic minority
pupils in England went to schools where ethnic minority pupils are
a majority.

In 2016, the Social Integration Commission found that people
under 17 have, on average, fewer than 50% of the interactions with
other ethnicities than would be expected if there was no social
segregation.

But universities “are also a cause of segregation because, as
they gain reputations for being undiverse, they repel perfectly
capable students from non-white and underprivileged backgrounds who
should consider studying there”, says The Guardian’s Afua Hirsch.

It is also “the shortcomings of the decentralised, college-based
admissions system, which lacks transparency and, it seems, leads to
differing assessment standards, thereby damaging claims of a level
playing field in assessment between colleges”, says Cambridge
student newspaper The Tab.

What can be done about it?

Oxford says it will be expanding its summer school programme by
50%. The university insists that it is making “rapid progress” and
that tutors were taking into account GCSE results and whether
students are from an “underprivileged background, in care or from a
poorer-performing school”.

Cambridge, meanwhile, says it is committed to attracting
“high-achieving students”, regardless of background, and had made
“significant progress” in the last decade.

Both universities have so far “resisted pressure to introduce
systematic schemes for reduced offers”, instead opting for a
“flagging” system which alerts tutors to applicants from
disadvantaged backgrounds, according to The Times.

Gyimah has urged Oxbridge to reconsider, warning that “very hard
levers” are now available to the university watchdog, the Office
for Students, if the universities fail to meet targets for access
and participation.