Universities accused of making a 'mockery' of A-levels as the number of unconditional offers surges by more than 1,600 per cent

Universities have been accused of making a “mockery” of A-levels after a huge increase in the number of unconditional offers they hand out.

In the scramble to secure students amid fierce competition from rival institutions, universities are awarding tens of thousands of offers to students regardless of what results they obtain.

Since 2014, the number of unconditional places handed out to sixth form pupils has surged from 2,985 to 51,615, up by more than 1,600 percent.

Of the 259,230 sixth form students who applied to university this year, nearly one in five received an unconditional offer.

The new figures also show that students predicted to get Cs are twice as likely to receive an unconditional offer as those with straight A*s.

While such offers were traditionally awarded to exceptional candidates, in recent years, they have been awarded in increasing numbers.

The trend has accelerated since 2014, when the Government announced that caps on university places would be lifted the following year.

Last night academics and MPs accused universities of engaging in a “free for all”, which they fear will drive down standards in a bid to “maximise income”.

Their concerns are borne out by the figures published by Ucas yesterday, which reveal that 10.6 per cent of applicants with three predicted C grades were given an unconditional offer.

This compared with just 4.6 per cent of students who were predicted to achieve three A*s.

Furthermore, analysis of the data shows that just one in four students actually achieved or exceeded their predicted grades, suggesting that thousands of guaranteed places were awarded using unreliable predictions.

Speaking to The Daily Telegraph last night, Lord Willetts, the former universities minister, said the trend was “worrying”.

He added that it could lead to students “coasting” through their A-level exams and failing to reach their potential.

“The growth [in unconditional offers] is dramatic.” he continued. “There are features in this which are worrying. Universities are competing against one another more than ever now, which is a good thing actually.

“But it’s bad news if there are some youngsters receiving these guarantees who are not working hard. I think this is the kind of thing that Universities UK and Ucas should look into.”

His comments were echoed by Robert Halfon, chair of Commons education committee, who claimed that universities were putting “funding” above “standards”.

“While we need do need contextualised admissions, having a free for all and using students as a revenue raiser is entirely out of order,” he added.

“This is diluting the quality of education, and universities are clearly putting the need to secure funding from an optimal number of students above standards."

It follows an investigation by The Daily Telegraph in August this year, which revealed that some of the country’s leading universities have more than doubled the number of unconditionals they award.

A series of freedom information requests found that the University of Birmingham handed out 2,471 unconditional offers last year, up from 1,585 four years ago, while University College London has tripled its numbers from 111 to 1,135 during the same period.

“I think this is making a mockery of A-levels. It surely can’t be right that so many students are being awarded places without having proved themselves through the examination process,” said Prof Alan Smithers, head of education at Buckingham University.

“Our leading universities achieved their high standing through being highly selective, and because they wholeheartedly focussed on selecting candidates who demonstrated excellence.

“If they are going to resort to just handing out places, not on potential but desire to maximise income, they risk jeopardising the standards they are known for around the world.”

A spokesman for the Department for Education said: “We are closely monitoring the number of unconditional offers made each year and what, if any, impact they might have on student outcomes.”

The end of cycle admissions report, published by Ucas annually, also found that white students are proportionally the least likely to receive a place at university, with just 29.3 percent gaining a place.

In contrast, the entry rate for students of black ethnicity was 40.4 percent, up by 3.2 percent on last year.