The Office for Students (OfS) said the percentages of students with top degrees at three unnamed universities and colleges raised “potential concerns that require further scrutiny”. The proportion of firsts awarded in England has more than doubled in the past decade, prompting fears that degrees will be seen as undervalued. If universities or colleges are found to have breached OfS rules, they can be fined up to £500,000 or 2% of their income. The regulator requires institutions to award qualifications that are “reliable” compared to previous years and based on “students’ knowledge and skills”. Grade inflation, the practice of rewarding the same level of student performance with increasingly higher degree classifications, is expressly prohibited. The OfS said: “The decision to launch these investigations means that the OfS has identified potential concerns that require further scrutiny across the three providers. “The fact that the OfS is carrying out these investigations should not be interpreted as an indication that any form of wrongdoing has actually taken place.” Although the watchdog declined to name the universities and colleges under review, it plans to release further details “in due course”. In the 2020-21 academic year, 37.9% of students received a first-class degree, up from 15.7% in 2010-11. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Two months ago, Universities UK and GuildHE – representing 197 UK universities – pledged to restore the proportion of top degrees to pre-pandemic levels. “We cannot overlook the need to preserve the value of a degree and so must redouble our efforts to identify and address unexplained increases in firsts and 2:1s,” they said in a joint statement.

title: “Sharp Rise In Top Degrees At Three English Universities Surveyed Universities Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-12-09” author: “Denise Reaves”

The Office for Students (OfS) said the percentages of students with top degrees at three unnamed universities and colleges raised “potential concerns that require further scrutiny”. The proportion of firsts awarded in England has more than doubled in the past decade, prompting fears that degrees will be seen as undervalued. If universities or colleges are found to have breached OfS rules, they can be fined up to £500,000 or 2% of their income. The regulator requires institutions to award qualifications that are “reliable” compared to previous years and based on “students’ knowledge and skills”. Grade inflation, the practice of rewarding the same level of student performance with increasingly higher degree classifications, is expressly prohibited. The OfS said: “The decision to launch these investigations means that the OfS has identified potential concerns that require further scrutiny across the three providers. “The fact that the OfS is carrying out these investigations should not be interpreted as an indication that any form of wrongdoing has actually taken place.” Although the watchdog declined to name the universities and colleges under review, it plans to release further details “in due course”. In the 2020-21 academic year, 37.9% of students received a first-class degree, up from 15.7% in 2010-11. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Two months ago, Universities UK and GuildHE – representing 197 UK universities – pledged to restore the proportion of top degrees to pre-pandemic levels. “We cannot overlook the need to preserve the value of a degree and so must redouble our efforts to identify and address unexplained increases in firsts and 2:1s,” they said in a joint statement.

title: “Sharp Rise In Top Degrees At Three English Universities Surveyed Universities Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-29” author: “Thomas Ramirez”

The Office for Students (OfS) said the percentages of students with top degrees at three unnamed universities and colleges raised “potential concerns that require further scrutiny”. The proportion of firsts awarded in England has more than doubled in the past decade, prompting fears that degrees will be seen as undervalued. If universities or colleges are found to have breached OfS rules, they can be fined up to £500,000 or 2% of their income. The regulator requires institutions to award qualifications that are “reliable” compared to previous years and based on “students’ knowledge and skills”. Grade inflation, the practice of rewarding the same level of student performance with increasingly higher degree classifications, is expressly prohibited. The OfS said: “The decision to launch these investigations means that the OfS has identified potential concerns that require further scrutiny across the three providers. “The fact that the OfS is carrying out these investigations should not be interpreted as an indication that any form of wrongdoing has actually taken place.” Although the watchdog declined to name the universities and colleges under review, it plans to release further details “in due course”. In the 2020-21 academic year, 37.9% of students received a first-class degree, up from 15.7% in 2010-11. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Two months ago, Universities UK and GuildHE – representing 197 UK universities – pledged to restore the proportion of top degrees to pre-pandemic levels. “We cannot overlook the need to preserve the value of a degree and so must redouble our efforts to identify and address unexplained increases in firsts and 2:1s,” they said in a joint statement.

title: “Sharp Rise In Top Degrees At Three English Universities Surveyed Universities Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-12-17” author: “Dianna Ward”

The Office for Students (OfS) said the percentages of students with top degrees at three unnamed universities and colleges raised “potential concerns that require further scrutiny”. The proportion of firsts awarded in England has more than doubled in the past decade, prompting fears that degrees will be seen as undervalued. If universities or colleges are found to have breached OfS rules, they can be fined up to £500,000 or 2% of their income. The regulator requires institutions to award qualifications that are “reliable” compared to previous years and based on “students’ knowledge and skills”. Grade inflation, the practice of rewarding the same level of student performance with increasingly higher degree classifications, is expressly prohibited. The OfS said: “The decision to launch these investigations means that the OfS has identified potential concerns that require further scrutiny across the three providers. “The fact that the OfS is carrying out these investigations should not be interpreted as an indication that any form of wrongdoing has actually taken place.” Although the watchdog declined to name the universities and colleges under review, it plans to release further details “in due course”. In the 2020-21 academic year, 37.9% of students received a first-class degree, up from 15.7% in 2010-11. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Two months ago, Universities UK and GuildHE – representing 197 UK universities – pledged to restore the proportion of top degrees to pre-pandemic levels. “We cannot overlook the need to preserve the value of a degree and so must redouble our efforts to identify and address unexplained increases in firsts and 2:1s,” they said in a joint statement.