Admissions and equity challenges for HE post COVID-19

Amongst the range of effects that COVID-19 will have on higher education this year, and possibly into future years, admission arrangements for students is one of the biggest. It is also one of the most difficult to manage because it is inherently cross sector, involving both schools and the compulsory education sector as well as higher education.

In virtually every country there is no template of how to deal with this and it shows. In most countries the picture is still not clear and major concerns exist in particular regarding the impact on learners from low income and disadvantaged groups.

Domestic student admissions

Over the past week we have undertaken a snap survey which has gathered information from experts in over 20 countries looking at the present situation with university admissions. The focus of the survey has been on admission of domestic students.

As has been outlined in University World News, admission arrangements for such students have been heavily disrupted because of the impact of COVID-19, with key international examinations cancelled.

Admission arrangements for domestic students have always varied greatly across countries. Start dates for the academic year are not the same and the role of end of school examinations differ hugely as well as the nature of these examinations.

Our survey shows that, for some countries where examinations have already been taken to determine the 2020 intake, such as the United States, the impact on this year’s intake is perhaps less. Although, of course, in the US the period up to the start of the academic year in the autumn is one of supporting students to enrol and this will be affected severely.

In addition, 2021 entry in the US has already taken an impact with the cancellation of the first two rounds of SAT tests for this summer.

For countries which are due to have examinations this summer, which will form the basis for university enrolment later in the year, cancellations are happening apace.

In England and Wales the A Level examination, for which over 300,000 students have already received predicted grades, will not apparently be happening this summer and will be replaced by a combination of teacher assessments and predicted grades, with the possibility of an examination in September for students unhappy with the grades they receive through this process.

While the picture is still fairly unclear in England and Wales, the outline of a plan to at least try to reassure students has been made public.

At the time of writing, in other countries which have cancelled examinations, such as Ireland, Norway or Nigeria, students are still waiting to learn what exactly is going to happen. For a host of countries from Austria to the Philippines, Mexico and China – which admits more students than any other country in the world – the hope is that examinations can still be taken this summer.

The reality, though, is that, as the global pandemic appears nowhere near its peak, delivering physical examinations this year looks challenging.

At the same time, however, some countries do want to go ahead with physical examinations. Germany, for example, has agreed across all its states to continue with its Abitur examination – possession of which is a matriculation requirement for higher education.

Admission without examinations

The survey shows clearly that finding a way to admit students in 2020-21 without examinations will be a huge challenge, but it is one they will need to address.

With the cliff-edge drop in international students, the higher education systems that depend heavily on them for income such as the United Kingdom, Australia and the US in particular, and possibly Malaysia and others, will need to ensure that there are at least as many, if not more, home students coming through the doors this year.

All of the present options come weighed down with drawbacks. Online assessments appear to be under consideration in some countries (and have been done before in South Africa to cope with their student protests in the late 2010s). Such an approach would hugely disadvantage low-income and rural students. Access to the internet follows income levels across the world.

Learning or taking an examination on a mobile phone (if this is even available as an option) is not the same as through laptops or PCs.

Relying on teacher assessments, as is being mooted in the UK and could come into play in many more countries, places huge pressures on teachers and requires clear, transparent standards that may be difficult to construct in a short period of time.

Over half of the experts in the countries surveyed thought that the start of next academic year for those with autumn entry may be delayed, giving more time for examinations to be taken. The pressure here falls on governments to support universities to amend their timetables and support universities/students through to perhaps January.

There are no straightforward solutions on offer to ensure that students across the world are able to enter higher education in 2020, and also in 2021, in an efficient and equitable way. However, while the challenges look daunting, there could be opportunities too.

A heightened focus on home student recruitment, combined with a need for more flexible entry arrangements, represents a chance for universities across the world to increase their focus on groups who are currently under-represented in higher education. If this was to be done, then the COVID-19 cloud enveloping higher education across the world may still have a silver lining.

Dr Graeme Atherton is the director of the National Education Opportunities Network (NEON) in the United Kingdom.