Does anyone know how reliable the Guardian's 'Average UCAS Score' section is?

On the Law league table, some of the unis are listed as having an average entry tariff that would be impossible to achieve without taking 4 A Levels, and I was wondering if this is accurate? I'm a bit skeptical as the table has some really odd rankings and some of the unis that are said to want A*A*AA list their entry requirements as like A*AA, but I was interested in whether or not only taking 3 A Levels could affect my chances of getting into them.

(edited 6 months ago)

Reply 1

PQ

Clearing and Applications Advisor

21

Original post by meganpantry

On the Law league table, some of the unis are listed as having an average entry tariff that would be impossible to achieve without taking 4 A Levels, and I was wondering if this is accurate? I'm a bit skeptical as the table has some really odd rankings and some of the unis that are said to want A*A*AA list their entry requirements as like A*AA, but I was interested in whether or not only taking 3 A Levels could affect my chances of getting into them.

The values in the league tables are accurate but they only show the TOTAL tariff points of ENTRANTS in 2020 (when teacher assessed grades were used). It doesn’t reflect anything about the chances of an offer.

You can see a more detailed breakdown of tariff points distribution on the Discover Uni website for each course.

Reply 2

McGinger

18

And it includes many International qualifications where a 'higher tariff' is possible - but has never meant those applicants were more likely to get an offer.

As with all statistics, never take them as face value - and always be sceptical about how the data was gathered, and presented.

Reply 3

Artjen

14

The table is talking about the average entry tariff of students who attend that university. That's not the same thing as the grades the university asks for in its standard offer. It's quite possible that students will score above the standard offer if they do 4 A levels. If a university offers you a place if you get AAA, and then you get AAA, you get in. You won't get shunted out by someone else who was offered AAA but got AAAB.

What's not clear is whether universities are more likely to make an offer of AAA to someone who is doing 4 A levels, than someone who is only doing 3. But you will meet plenty of opinion on this forum that doing 4 is a bad idea!

(edited 6 months ago)

Does anyone know how reliable the Guardian's 'Average UCAS Score' section is?

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