Following a record year of awards of first and upper second degrees, British universities have launched an investigation. A damning report by the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education raised concerns although the report itself did not call for a review and stated that the evidence was not conclusive of systematic inflation and “bumping up”.
Why is this Happening At All?
You’d be forgiven for thinking that your final degree grade depends purely on your actual result. Your university may say a score over 80 is a first, 70 a high second, 60 a low second and on. It does not always work this way. Exams and coursework are only as difficult as the questions that are set. If there is a heavy weighting in favour of 1st and upper 2nds in a particular year, the grades might be bumped down to align the natural bell curve of results (presuming the questions where easier than the norm). If there is heavy weighting at the bottom end, the threshold is lowered on the assumption the exams that year was particularly difficult. The issue now is a greater trend towards higher degree results despite these checks and balances.
“Cause Not Clear”
Universities have decided to launch a review, but it’s important to note that the QAA has stated that the issue is not clear. There are other potential factors to consider:
- A greater proportion of students working harder because they want to be there, and the cost of university is now high
- Reforms and improvements to the methods of teaching within universities
- Greater efficiency drives in universities amongst faculty and in resources used for teaching
The report claimed that it was “nearly impossible” to determine which of the above is true, or whether universities are inflating results too much. Nevertheless, for full transparency and to address these concerns, a review is going ahead. Damian Hinds – the current Education Secretary – welcomed the move.
Part of the concern is that universities are allocating higher awards in general because it looks good to league tables as a measure of the university’s success. But the perception is seemingly quite different – others feel degrees are being devalued by this.
The Figures
Since the academic year 2007-2008 (a period of ten years), the number of graduates awarded an upper-second degree grade (a 2:1), has increased by 55%. The equivalent figure for the award of first-class degrees rose by 100% to a total of 26%. It is these two meteoric increases that are causing concern. Of particularly note was University of Wolverhampton who awarded firsts to 5% of students in 2007 and 28% in 2017.
Across all universities, ¾ of all graduates now receive either a 2:1 or a 1st with decreasing numbers of those receiving a 2:2 or a 3rd.