Covid disruption causing concern for university applicants

Poorest students hardest hit by pandemic pressures, potentially setting back university efforts to widen participation

Poor students could be the hardest hit by Covid disruptions to A-levels, with almost two-thirds of university applicants expressing concern about their grades, a survey has suggested.

Some 64 per cent of the current cohort of university applicants are worried about their grades, up from the 58 per cent who said the same in 2021, a poll by social mobility charity the Sutton Trust found. Applicants from working class backgrounds are more likely to be concerned than those from middle class backgrounds, and 72 per cent of teachers think the attainment gap between poorer pupils and their classmates will widen at their schools this year.