The Student Room Group

Why do Uni applications ask for gender?

I personally think universities should not know the gender of their applicant.

This will
1) Stop the current female bias due to this old supposed bias towards men
2) Get rid of those stupid gender quotas
3) Mean that only those who are worthy get in, not those who must fill ticklists.

I just think some people are losing out on a better education because of many biases, and one of them is gender.

It would also prove all the feminists wrong, which would be hilarious in itself.

On the topic, companies should release how much they pay their workers, which will disprove the gender pay gap (which has already been disproved) but in a way people can't argue. Would really help with equality, for everyone to know we're very equal in first world countries, and we need to focus on other countries.
For ethical reasons I would assume the application requires the applicant to disclose the gender. For example, when applying to accommodation at your university, students who wish to be in a single-gender dorm (Males or females alone) should be allowed to. Without the disclosure of your gender, there's a chance that people will end up in dorms which they don't wish to be in. And besides, I would imagine universities are not biased on genders. The difference in the female:male ratio (Firm choice is 4 female students to every 1 male) could be solely based on the gender of the applicants. For example, maybe a larger majority of students that apply to that university may be female.

In terms of companies, if you know that a company is underpaying a member of staff based on their gender, especially for a job of the same tier/variety as a member of staff of the other sex, you have the right to take the company to court. There has been a law put in place that it is illegal to alter rate of pay for staff based on their gender.
Reply 2
Original post by ComputerMaths97


It would also prove all the feminists wrong, which would be hilarious in itself.



How dare you. See, this is a clear example of institutionalised sexism.
I agree. Gender, age, ethnicity, martial status and all that stuff should not be included in university or school applications, or for jobs.

For accommodation and things where it might be necessary (including equality monitoring if you must), that can be handled on a separate form.
Original post by ComputerMaths97
I personally think universities should not know the gender of their applicant.

This will
1) Stop the current female bias due to this old supposed bias towards men
2) Get rid of those stupid gender quotas
3) Mean that only those who are worthy get in, not those who must fill ticklists.

I just think some people are losing out on a better education because of many biases, and one of them is gender.

It would also prove all the feminists wrong, which would be hilarious in itself.

On the topic, companies should release how much they pay their workers, which will disprove the gender pay gap (which has already been disproved) but in a way people can't argue. Would really help with equality, for everyone to know we're very equal in first world countries, and we need to focus on other countries.


Im not sure about this but I believe much of the personal information on your UCAS form such as gender is only disclosed to the uni after they make you an offer or after you accept it I can't remember which.

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