More BAME students secured places at Oxford University

OVER a fifth of undergraduates who obtained places at Oxford University last year were from black and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds.

Oxford University stated that 22.1% of new students coming from a BAME background in 2019 was up from 18.3% in 2018.

Its vice-chancellor Prof Louise Richardson said the figures showed “steady progress towards diversifying the make-up of our student body”.

Hence some colleges and courses remain much more diverse than others.

The university’s Annual Admissions Statistical Report showed five or fewer black UK students were admitted to 13 of Oxford’s largest courses between 2017 and 2019.

One UK black student won a place to study biology and two were admitted to study history and politics. None earned a place to study geography.

The university said it will expand online resources to increase diversity. Its state school access programme, UNIQ, will run exclusively online this year, as will the Target Oxbridge scheme, which helps black students with applications.

Prof Richardson said: “The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has exposed the deep education inequalities in our society. We are acutely conscious of its differential impact both on our current students and on those considering applying to Oxford.”

The proportion of British state school pupils winning a place at Oxford increased to 62.3%.