Does being at private school put you at a disadvantage when applying at uni

Original post by isaaccharles

Haha well the superiority of teaching isn't really that great at my school but the class sizing is very small, less than 8 people in all my classes. But I have to say that some teachers at my school are great and genuinely want to teach us.

Exactly my maths teacher only learnt my name in the last couple months when she taught me as too... But friends at private schools have 3/4 people in many of their classes!

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Reply 42

Original post by em.d_4

Exactly my maths teacher only learnt my name in the last couple months when she taught me as too... But friends at private schools have 3/4 people in many of their classes!

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Haha maybe because there are lots of people in your maths class. Personally I doubt it that many people from comprehensive schools would ever consider privately educated people as humans...

Reply 43

Original post by isaaccharles

Haha maybe because there are lots of people in your maths class. Personally I doubt it that many people from comprehensive schools would ever consider privately educated people as humans...

Because I live in an extremely affluent area the distinction between the two is extremely minimal to be honest. So it's not like it is in many other areas, almost everyone here could afford private education it's just down to personal choices of parents really eg. We only have single sex private schools nearby

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Reply 44

Original post by em.d_4

Because I live in an extremely affluent area the distinction between the two is extremely minimal to be honest. So it's not like it is in many other areas, almost everyone here could afford private education it's just down to personal choices of parents really eg. We only have single sex private schools nearby

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Yes, according to personal experience it was terrible. We went to a comprehensive school for a sporting activity and we were treated awfully by the students there. We were constantly called snobs and were made fun of just because of the school we are from. My school is a single sex school too haha

Reply 45

harryhamilton

Original post by isaaccharles

Yes, according to personal experience it was terrible. We went to a comprehensive school for a sporting activity and we were treated awfully by the students there. We were constantly called snobs and were made fun of just because of the school we are from. My school is a single sex school too haha

we didn't even do anything and as if we were being snobs -__-

Reply 46

Original post by harryhamilton

we didn't even do anything and as if we were being snobs -__-

i know

Reply 47

username1187108

5

I think people on here are missing the fact that only 7% of kids in the UK are privately educated yet almost half of people at Oxbridge went to a private school.

Although it can clearly be seen that those who went to private schools achieve better grades, I think it's completely wrong to assume that they are more intelligent or necessarily more worthy of a place at Oxbridge than a person from a state school with slightly lower grades. There are also statistics to show that those who were state educated go on to achieve higher grades in the exams for their degrees than those privately educated.

Reply 48

Original post by charlotte_3008

I think people on here are missing the fact that only 7% of kids in the UK are privately educated yet almost half of people at Oxbridge went to a private school.

Although it can clearly be seen that those who went to private schools achieve better grades, I think it's completely wrong to assume that they are more intelligent or necessarily more worthy of a place at Oxbridge than a person from a state school with slightly lower grades. There are also statistics to show that those who were state educated go on to achieve higher grades in the exams for their degrees than those privately educated.

I think the final point links back to what I was saying earlier about state schools people having to take more initiative and be more independent to achieve similar results.

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Reply 49

Entertainment Forum Helper

Original post by charlotte_3008

I think people on here are missing the fact that only 7% of kids in the UK are privately educated yet almost half of people at Oxbridge went to a private school.

Although it can clearly be seen that those who went to private schools achieve better grades, I think it's completely wrong to assume that they are more intelligent or necessarily more worthy of a place at Oxbridge than a person from a state school with slightly lower grades. There are also statistics to show that those who were state educated go on to achieve higher grades in the exams for their degrees than those privately educated.

The majority of Oxbridge applicants are privately educated so that is perceptibly the reason why half of the people at Oxbridge went to private schools. Those who went to private schools attain better grades obviously due to hard work. Wouldn't it be very unfair if a person with slightly lower grades is offered a place at Oxbridge whereas someone from a private school is rejected although they have higher grades?

Reply 50

Emma:-)

19

Original post by Nymthae

It doesn't affect your UCAS points in any way. If you get a B, you get a B wherever you go which awards you 100 UCAS points. Private school, state school, private candidate... whatever!

They're not going to say no to you because you went to a private school.

I agree.
I always thought it was going to be more of an advantage (rather than a disadvantage) as at a private school you will get more help and support, even smaller classes etc which means you are more likely too get better grades.

Reply 51

ooh-la-laa

7

Original post by charlotte_3008

I think people on here are missing the fact that only 7% of kids in the UK are privately educated yet almost half of people at Oxbridge went to a private school.

There are also statistics to show that those who were state educated go on to achieve higher grades in the exams for their degrees than those privately educated.

That last point is a bit more nuanced than you make out though. Your motivation for not explaining that is....? This research actually showed that for A / A* there was no difference in degree outcomes. However for B and C results there was a statistically meaningful difference.

I still think the more pertinent fact is not the % of Oxbridge students that are privately educated (38.6% for Cambridge, and 43.2% for Oxford - not convinced that 38% could be called "almost half") but rather that the success rate for private school applicants is almost 50% better than that for presumably equally qualified state school applicants.

Also across the board (all UK school types) less girls apply as well.

Reply 52

All-in

3

Original post by em.d_4

I think the final point links back to what I was saying earlier about state schools people having to take more initiative and be more independent to achieve similar results.

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This is true, and is the reason why universities take into consideration contextual information. I went to both a very grotty (and violent) South London comprehensive school and a public HMC school. The difference was considerable. In the comprehensive school, teachers spent most of their time micromanaging all the unruly kids (the majority of a 35 strong class), with the obvious effect this has on the quality of lessons. In the public school, classes were of around 8-10, all eager to work hard and interested in the lessons. Class discussions were encouraged and was intellectually stimulating. There wasn't any difference in the quality of the teachers, the difference was in the delivery of lessons, the time dedicated by teachers to you and the help on hand (contact outside lessons etc.) and just in general the benefits of a nurturing environment. I was basically self-taught during comprehensive school, and for the fact that I tried to better my conditions and work hard, was intimidated, bullied and also once assaulted by a group of gang members who thought they were too cool for school. The colour of my skin probably didn't help as well, as racism was rampant (I'm white in case you are wondering).

Probably my case is of the two extremes, but the difference in my perfomance was very pronounced. Had I stayed at that school, I don't know what would have happened, but definitely would have not achieved the same grades I did at the public school.

Reply 53

username1187108

5

Original post by isaaccharles

The majority of Oxbridge applicants are privately educated so that is perceptibly the reason why half of the people at Oxbridge went to private schools. Those who went to private schools attain better grades obviously due to hard work. Wouldn't it be very unfair if a person with slightly lower grades is offered a place at Oxbridge whereas someone from a private school is rejected although they have higher grades?

There are significant reasons why the majority of people who apply to Oxbridge are from private schools. They do not simply apply because 'they attain better grades due to hard work', they apply because they are in an environment where they are encouraged to apply. You seem to be stating that people at private schools do well simply because they work hard, and seem to be entirely underestimating the fundamental differences in attitudes and atmosphere in private and state schools...

Don't you think that their results are also a result of small classes/focused teaching/dedicated teachers and educated parents with high expectations and the ability to provide a high level of support? So no, I don't think it would be 'very unfair'.

Btw, I go to a high achieving private school.

Reply 54

Original post by charlotte_3008

There are significant reasons why the majority of people who apply to Oxbridge are from private schools. They do not simply apply because 'they attain better grades due to hard work', they apply because they are in an environment where they are encouraged to apply. You seem to be stating that people at private schools do well simply because they work hard, and seem to be entirely underestimating the fundamental differences in attitudes and atmosphere in private and state schools...

Don't you think that their results are also a result of small classes/focused teaching/dedicated teachers and educated parents with high expectations and the ability to provide a high level of support? So no, I don't think it would be 'very unfair'.

Btw, I go to a high achieving private school.

I'm at a high achieving state school but the big difference I've noticed between my school and privately educated friends was the support and access to help they had in their application to uni! Almost all my year will go to.uni but the level of help.and knowledge we got was uncomparable

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Reply 55