No dropout rise at university which let in the disadvantaged

A REDUCTION in undergraduate entry grades for the most deprived students has been hailed a success after it had no impact on the dropout rate.

Abertay University in Dundee is taking on 60 per cent more students from disadvantaged backgrounds than it did in 2017 due to its “radical” new approach to contextual admissions.

Prof Nigel Seaton, principal and vicechancellor of the university, said that since the change, the retention rate for those students has been unaffected.

This means more deprived students are getting on to their desired university courses, with no rise in dropouts.

Prof Seaton’s comments come as universities continue to face pressure from the higher education watchdog to admit more students from ethnic minorities and disadvantaged backgrounds.

“Of course, the real test of this approach is how the students do once admitted,” Prof Seaton told Times Higher Education.

“Like most universities, our retention rate for disadvantaged students is slightly lower than for other students. Critically, though, [it] has remained the same as it was before we introduced the new policy in 2017, despite the significant increase in the number we have been able to admit.

Average class grades have also remained broadly in line with previous years.

“Our new approach was a calculated risk. But it was not a leap in the dark. We acted according to our convictions, and it worked,” he said.

The university now allows students to be admitted with three rather than four Scottish Highers, which are also at lower levels than usually requested. It was the first university in Scotland to introduce this policy.

Factors such as family background, previous schooling and difficult personal circumstances are taken into account.

“We do think our approach can be applied more generally. However, it’s a package of measures that should not adopted individually,” Prof Seaton told