Student loan system changes: One in four black students could be barred from university

The NUS described the government’s proposals as ‘classist, ableist and racist’

2 years ago

A quarter of black students could be barred from accessing a student loan due to the government’s proposed changes to the minimum entry requirements for university, according to the findings of a new report.

In February, the Department of Education announced it was looking into altering the minimum entry requirements for university by preventing those who obtained below a level 4 (the equivalent of a C grade) in maths and English GCSEs from being able to take out a student loan.

Research by the Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS) found that in 2012, 10 per cent of those who started at university did not achieve at least a grade C in their English and maths GCSEs.

Educational attainment gaps mean that under the proposed changes to the student loan system, students from specific ethnic groups or socio-economic backgrounds would be disproportionately affected.

If the changes had been in place during the 2011/12 academic year, 23 per cent of black undergraduates would not have been eligible for student loans.

Nearly one in four undergraduates who were eligible for free school meals when they were 16 years of age would also not have been able to access student loans.

Many of these students would have been unable to self-fund their education and would have been unable to attend university as a result.

The IFS report concluded that the proposed changes to the minimum entry requirement system “would disproportionately affect groups of students who are already under-represented in higher education.”

National Union of Students President Larissa Kennedy said: “This research shows that plans to introduce minimum entry requirements are an attack on opportunity. This government parrots the language of ‘levelling up’ but these proposals are classist, ableist and racist: they cruelly target those from marginalised communities, and seek to gatekeep education.”

University and College Union (UCU) general secretary Jo Grady said: ‘This research provides yet more evidence that imposing student loan eligibility criteria would be an attack on the working class, with ministers attempting to slam the gate shut on those it deems unworthy of entering higher education.

“Students from well-off backgrounds will still be able to get their education funded by their family, so will not be impacted by arbitrary restrictions for access to loans. Instead, the changes would limit access to higher education for those from less well-off backgrounds and widen society’s dividing lines. If enacted they would make a mockery of the government’s proclaimed commitment to levelling up.”

A spokesperson for the Department of Education said: “We have more 18 year olds from disadvantaged backgrounds going to university than ever before. Our consultation is inviting views not on how we close doors, but on how we ensure that there are many routes to improve a person’s career and life opportunities – whether that is ensuring students are best prepared for university through a foundation year or helping them pursue an apprenticeship or further education.

“It is unacceptable for students – particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds – to be pushed onto higher education courses that do not improve their career prospects. Evidence shows that students with lower prior attainment are less likely to complete their degree and get a ‘good’ classification, and more likely to have worse employment and degree outcomes. The aim of minimum eligibility requirements is to make sure that only those who will benefit from it, go on to study at degree level, regardless of their background.”

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