Statement from the Master concerning Admissions and A-level results 2020.
We recognize that this has been a challenging and difficult year for students, their supporters and their teachers. We send our heartfelt congratulations to all those who have already secured the results they expected in such circumstances.
Christ's is committed to widening participation. Our incoming first-year cohort will have the highest ever proportion of students from state schools, as well as the highest ever number of students from areas of deprivation and low progression to Higher Education.
As it stands, over 90% of our A-level and SQA offer-holders from state schools have had their places at Cambridge confirmed, and this figure is likely to increase over the coming weeks.
We are giving the small number of offer-holders whose places have not been confirmed as much help and advice as we can in understanding the options now open to them, and we are encouraging them to remain in touch with our Admissions Office. In making our decisions we have looked carefully at each offer-holder’s situation and circumstances, and taken into account all the information available to us. We note that not all these students have been "failed by the algorithm": in some cases they failed to meet their offer conditions because the estimated A-level grades submitted by their schools to examination boards fell short, and in others because they under-performed in assessments other than A-levels.
While the desire to extend a blanket reprieve even to students whose estimated grades fell short is understandable, it must be balanced against considerations of inter-generational and inter-cohort fairness: fairness to the many students we have had to release to their insurance institutions in past years; and fairness to state school applicants in the coming years whose education has also been disrupted by the pandemic, and who deserve the opportunity to apply to Christ's in the knowledge that there will be no significant reduction in places while we process an earlier "bulge".
Christ's will admit any student who meets their offer conditions on appeal or via an autumn examination sitting.