Racial Disparities Between University Student Attainment

The “attainment gap” within UK universities refer to the variation in first-class honours, and upper-second class degrees received between different groups, ranging from factors such as gender, socio-economic status, disability, and ethnicity (Li, 2024). For the purpose of this research, the reason for this attainment gap which will be analysed is ethnicity. A piece of research sampling students from universities in the UK found that 37.88% of white students achieved a first-class honour in their degree, compared to 22.75% from students from a BAME background, whereas 52.24% of white students achieved an upper-second class degree, compared to 59.91% from a BAME background (Boero, Karanja, Naylor & Thiele, 2024). This means that a total of 90.12% of these sampled white students achieved this aforementioned high degree result, whereas 82.66% of BAME students achieved the equivalent, with a lower percentage of this number being a first-class honour.

However, what is the reason for this attainment gap in university? A student survey asked about representation within university, and found that whilst campuses and social activities are seen as inclusive to a satisfactory level, this does not extend to a professional level. Furthermore, there is a “lack of representation of BAME staff” and this cultural divide can lead to being a contributor to attainment gaps (Rana, Bashier, Begum & Bartlett, 2022). The reasons for this being a factor in the attainment gap spans over multiple different areas. For example, a lack of BAME lecturers in the university space may form an idea in the mind of students that it is less achievable for people of their ethnicity to succeed in their specific field, leading to feelings of being demotivated which can harm the likelihood of achieving these higher-class honours. Furthermore, a student in the aforementioned survey found that they were not able to engage with their tutor properly as they were making cultural references surrounding their white background, which led to them forming a weaker relationship with their tutor which could harm their chance in receiving the support that they need in their academia (Rana, Bashier, Begum & Bartlett, 2022). This shows how the role of staff within university can have a major impact on student attainment.

With regards to specifically medical student attainment, there is still this relationship that exists between attainment and ethnicity. There are many reasons for this, however, it stems from the structural and institutional policies which promote white majority cultures. This umbrella concept includes microaggressions from peers, and a lack of feeling of belonging which can lead to burnout, depressive symptoms, feelings of isolation and self-doubt (Morrison, Machado & Blackburn, 2023). As previously stated, these negative impacts can lead to lower attainment, however, this is even more prevalent for medical students due to how demanding the course is, and this lack of belonging would make it even more difficult than it already is to achieve those higher-class honours. Therefore, this shows the racial disparities in student attainment, as well as the reasons for this existing.

Whilst it is difficult to combat these issues, steps can be made in order to reduce the gap in student attainment between ethnicities. As previously mentioned, whilst inclusivity surrounding social activities in university are satisfactory, there is seen as a lack of representation from a professional perspective. This could be amended by offering further support for students from different ethnic backgrounds, ensuring that all content and methods of teaching within university are accessible to all, preventing the previously mentioned problem where students felt like they were not able to form a relationship with their lecturers or tutors. Making university feel more inclusive and comfortable for students of different ethnic backgrounds would be the first step in helping close the attainment gap in UK universities.

References

Boero, G., Karanja, B., Naylor, R., Thiele, T (2024). Awarding gaps in higher education by ethnicity, schooling and family background: a UK university case study, Education Economics. pp 1-16

Li, P (2024). Student experience in HEIs: What does the evidence say about the ethnicity awarding gap? The Diversity of Student Experience (DSE) Research Project. University of Oxford. Oxford.

Morrison, N., Machado, M., Blackburn, C (2023). Bridging the gap: Understanding the barriers and facilitators to performance for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic medical students in the United Kingdom, Medical Education. pp 443-456

Rana, K., Bashir, A., Begum, F., Bartlett, H (2022). Bridging the BAME Attainment Gap: Student and Staff Perspectives on Tackling Academic Bias, Frontiers in Education.