Unconditional offers not helping disadvantaged students

The Social Mobility Commission has called on universities to rethink their approach to unconditional offers and urged the admissions service to give clearer information on student finance.

In its sixth State of the Nation report, which looks at social mobility in relation to early childhood, schools, universities, further education and work, the commission says that universities should only make pre-qualification unconditional offers where it is “very clearly in the interests of the individual students to do so”.

“The higher education application and admissions system remains too complex, and fierce competition between institutions is resulting in too many universities making increasing numbers of unconditional offers which are frequently not in the best interests of students, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds,” the commission said.