Edinburgh the worst Russell Group university for admitting black students

In figures released by The Sunday Times, Edinburgh had the lowest percentage intake for black students out of all Russell Group universities in the 2015/16 academic year, at just 0.7 per cent.

The percentage of black people in the city of Edinburgh is double that figure at 1.4 per cent.

Edinburgh were joint lowest with Glasgow, whilst Queen's Mary, KCL, Warwick and Nottingham admitted the highest percentage of black students.

Edinburgh finished even lower than Oxford and Cambridge who have been widely criticised for admitting just 40 black students each in 2015/16.

Credit: The Times

Speaking to The Tab about the statistic, Diva Mukherji, the EUSA Black and Minority Officer said: "I was disappointed by the statistics recently published in the Times but not surprised. While progress is being made, the University of Edinburgh still regularly fails to acknowledge and provide for the needs of its Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) students.

"I would encourage the University to engage in an honest conversation with Black students, listen to their experiences, and commit to taking action to address this issue."

Meanwhile, EUSA President Patrick Kilduff told The Tab: "We are privileged to be able to study at the University of Edinburgh, but social privilege should not be an entry requirement.

"We must hold the University to account, forge inclusive paths for marginalised groups and make sure our University is as diverse and brilliant as possible."