A Welsh Government-commissioned report has concluded that students from Wales are less likely than those in other parts of the UK to gain a place at Oxford or Cambridge Universities due to poorer exam results.
But only yesterday the First Minister appeared to distance himself from his Labour administration’s own target to achieve 65% of pupils getting five A* to C grades by next year say the Conservatives. The figure for 2013 was 52.7%.
In 2013, 68.1% of GCSE entries in England were graded A* to C.
Wales also trails England for A Level grades with a lower proportion of entries scoring an A* to C grade.
Wales has frequently had one of the lowest rates of successful applications to Oxford and Cambridge of all the UK nations and regions.
The percentage of approved applications to Oxford University halved from 33.51% in 2000 to just 16.97% by 2010.
The report by former Secretary of State for Wales, Paul Murphy, recommends a series of hubs to help pupils apply for Oxbridge institutions.
Angela Burns AM, Shadow Minister for Education, said, “It is sadly not surprising that poorer exam results in Welsh schools result in fewer of our students getting the chance to study at the UK’s two most prestigious universities.
“Under Labour, Wales has had the worst rate of successful applications to Oxbridge of all the UK nations and regions.
“This is another symptom of Labour’s systemic failure in education and the general decline in standards, which is holding Welsh pupils back.
“Not enough is being done to stretch the brightest and the best and give every student the chance to reach their potential.
“Quality education is a key route out of poverty, towards building a more prosperous economy as well as improving the health and wellbeing of the nation.
“Despite evidence of the links between exam grades, university prospects and poverty, Carwyn Jones now appears to be distancing himself from his own exam result targets.
“While all options, including HE hubs, should be considered to improve successful Oxbridge applications, there is no easy alternative to an unapologetic drive to raise the exam performance of every child.”
