Unconditional Attraction - Birmingham University

Birmingham intends to make around 1,000 unconditional offers to students expected to score AAA as part of a large-scale pilot programme. They said the move was intended to reward students with the most potential and take the pressure off them in their final year. Students taking up an unconditional offer will be expected to name the university as their firm choice on their UCAS form. Prof David Eastwood, Birmingham's VC, said; “It’s a time when there are lots of pressures on young people and we are trying to take some of those pressures off. We believe that the effect of this is that they will do better in the summer. They have already got very strong performance in the bag… and we think there is no danger of them coasting. After all, their A-levels will be with them for the rest of their lives – their future employers will be very interested in them – and these are intensely serious young people.”

 

The 12 courses involved are: classics, maths, modern languages, philosophy, sociology, economics, materials engineering, political science, accounting and finance, business management, international relations and European politics, society and economics. Pupils taking up maths places must be predicted to score A*A*A*. Prof Eastwood said: "These are very good students with a range of [course] choices. Some other universities will be trying to attract them with discounted offers on accommodation and with scholarships."

 Source: Gordon Collins 'GTA Newsletter'