DGi
Secret to a
university place revealed
Work experience and volunteering were valued far more than
other types of extracurricular activity in a survey of university admissions
officers
Greg Hurst Education Editor, The Times
It is the holy grail of all ambitious teenagers and
conscientious sixth-form tutors: inside knowledge on how to submit a perfectly
crafted university application.
The answer, it seems, is simple. In addition to good grades
and an interest in their chosen degree course, applicants should try to get
work experience linked to the subject they want to study.
If this proves too difficult, regular voluntary work is the
next best way to stand out.
Work experience and volunteering were valued far more than
other types of extracurricular activity in a survey of university admissions
officers. They trumped the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, playing in a sports team,
learning a musical instrument, acting in a school play or travelling overseas.
University staff also predicted that the “soft skills”
gained from extracurricular activities would become more important in helping
them to choose between applicants after A-level reforms are introduced.
Admissions tutors said that the “decoupling” of AS levels
from A levels and the switch to end-of-course exams after two years would make
it more difficult for them to rely on grades alone.
The study, based on responses from 63 university admissions
teams, was conducted for World Challenge, a company that organises school
expeditions abroad. It also surveyed 350 students and interviewed heads of
sixth form and university directors of admissions.
When asked which three things they looked for in a
successful applicant, 92 per cent of university staff cited academic grades,
followed by an interest in the course or university (60 per cent) and the core
subject (25 per cent).
Almost all, however, said they looked for evidence of a
candidate’s extracurricular activities in their personal statement and 58 per
cent said this had become more important in the past decade, especially when
choosing between applicants with similar grades on oversubscribed courses.
Asked which types of activity added most value, the most
commonly cited was work experience, at 92 per cent, followed by regular
volunteering, at 68 per cent.
Tutors said that applicants should devote between 70 and 80
per cent of their personal statement to their academic interests and
experience, and the remaining 20 to 30 per cent to extracurricular activities.
When describing these, they said, candidates should take
care to describe the skills or personal development they had gained rather than
simply listing activities or achievements. The qualities they rated most highly
were communication skills, organisation and independence.
