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By Tony Grew - 8th July 2011
A new report from the Sutton Trust has revealed that four schools and one college have between them sent more students to Oxford and Cambridge universities over three years than 2,000 schools and colleges across the UK.
Between them, Westminster School, Eton College, Hills Road Sixth Form College, St Pauls School and St Pauls Girls School produced 946 Oxbridge entrants over the period 2007-09 – accounting for over one in 20 of all Oxbridge admissions.
Meanwhile just under 2,000 schools and colleges with less than one Oxbridge entrant a year produced a total of 927 Oxbridge entrants.
Sir Peter Lampl, chairman of the Sutton Trust, said: “We know these stark inequalities in university progression rates are driven primarily by the exam results in schools, yet the data we are publishing today also reveals that university chances can vary dramatically for schools with similar average grades.
"Our hope is that by making these figures available, the spotlight on schools will widen to encompass the actual destinations of pupils after they have left, alongside their A-level results."
The report's analysis of 750,000 destinations from 2,343 secondary schools shows a strong link between the average results of A-levels and equivalent exams at a school or college and the chances of going to university.
The tables also reveal large differences in university progression rates for some schools with similar examination results, particularly when considering entry to highly selective universities.
For example :at two grammar schools with almost identical A-level results, one recorded an average of 65 per cent of students going to the 30 top-performing universities while the other managed only 28 per cent.
At two low-scoring comprehensives, again with near identical Ucas tariff scores, almost 70 per cent of 18-year-olds applied to higher education at one, only 33 per cent in the other.
The report accompanies the first ever publication of figures detailing the higher education destinations of pupils from individual schools with sixth forms and colleges in England.
The Sutton Trust recommends that the government develop annual indicators detailing progression to HE as part of a ‘score card’ covering a range of progression measures tracking pupils after the age of 16, including employment, and vocational routes as well as higher education.
Any new system of advice and guidance needs to cover higher education - whether concerning the subjects studied during school, or the opportunities available after school.
The trust also calls for universities to do "outreach work" with local schools that have low FE progression rates as part of their access agreements with the office for fair access.
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