Addressing rise of unconditional offers is a must, says AoC

In response to today’s (25 Jan) new report, “Unconditional offers: Serving the interests of students?” from the Office for Students (OfS) which looks at the rise of unconditional offers, David Hughes, Chief Executive of the Association of Colleges, said:

“It is pleasing that UCAS has started to analyse the impact of unconditional offers and that OfS are taking this seriously.

“We have been increasingly concerned about the impact unconditional offers have on student motivation and achievement. The increase in numbers over the last few years cannot be explained away simply as attempts to widen participation. There are better ways to achieve that, with contextualised offers, for instance.

“Colleges and schools are dealing with the unintended consequence of the practice as students worry less about their grades and so take their foot off the gas. The OfS consultation will need to address potential solutions to drastically reduce or even rule-out this practice.”