Image: City of Stoke on Trent Sixth Form College [CC BY 2.0] via Flickr
Public trust in universities is at risk over “spiralling grade inflation”, the Office for Students has warned.
In an analysis of grade classifications from 2010-11 to 2016-17, the OfS found that the percentage of first and upper second class degrees awarded had jumped from 67 per cent (144,185) in 2010-11 to 78 per cent (190,300) in 2016-17.
First-class degrees alone have risen from 16 per cent (33,810) of all awards in 2010-11 to 27 per cent (66,675) in 2016-17. The largest increase in those gaining first class degrees, at 17 percentage points, was seen in graduates who had achieved BBC grades at A level.
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