Cambridge University.

[oneteen]

ttps://news.sky.com/story/cambridge-university-aims-to-ditch-most-unequal-title-with-admissions-overhaul-11656787

I don’t agree that it is common to find oneself marked out as “disadvantaged” when you live in a large detached house, have only ever had A* grades in GCSEs and A-levels and have a lifestyle that includes regular foreign holidays, restaurant outings and plenty of new clothes!

I didn't say it was, though.

And the vast majority of students at Cambridge with those characteristics wouldn't be in any way marked as disadvantaged, so either there must have been some other factor or anomaly in the case you mention.

The metrics are very crude, particularly the ones Cambridge use that include progression rates specifically to Cambridge.

As an example, many students living in Wales would be considered 'disadvantaged' because less than 100 students from Wales receive an offer from Cambridge each year and only around 70 actually go. This means that it is pretty likely that an applicant from Wales will live in a low progression to Cambridge postcode, giving them one tick, and go to a school that has had a low number of Cambridge offers, giving them two ticks. If they have also gone to a state school, they have their three ticks without any socio-economic measures being considered at all.

Perhaps your young friends might struggle less Maria, if they thought of what life was like for the genuinely disadvantaged. There's a similarity with the law: better several guilty men go free than one innocent man found guilty. It's really not one of life's big problems is it (incidentally on the other thread you referred to a boy having this syndrome; in this thread it's a girl. But if you know more than one student in this situation why stick to the singular?).

I hope I've got that correct - I didn't check. If I'm wrong, apologies!

No, goodbye - on the other thread I was carefully gender neutral. Check your assumptions

I think that is a large part of where the struggle arises from: the cognitive dissonance of knowing full well that she is not remotely disadvantaged, being treated as if she were (and having to go along with it) and knowing that many others, with whom she was at school, really are disadvantaged. It all seems like a ludicrous pretence for her university’s benefit.

This argument feels a bit weird. Somebody is feeling hard done by because they are treated as disadvantaged when they are not actually disadvantaged?

Confused, rather than hard done by. And the implicit condescension is not exactly confidence-boosting.

Surely they have the brains to realise the system is a blunt instrument and they shouldn’t take it personally?

She can analyse it after the event, but it takes anyone a while to work out what’s going on when they are being instrumentalised.

I still find your complaint odd. Are you expecting people to feel sorry for this person? Are you expecting the system to change to accommodate their feelings?

If you notice, I did a pre-emptive apology Maria :)

Well in that case you're making rather a big generalised deal out of the particular isolated case of a rather silly girl. She'll grow up eventually and realise there are bigger things to worry about.

I’m trying to point out that the admissions system can be very blunt indeed and is perhaps (and there are other indicators of this) naive.

I suspect that you're saying this student got a helping hand and you don't like it Maria. Do you have a quarrel with her aptitude?

I think we all know how blunt and therefore the admissions system is but I will reserve my sympathy for the people who the system works against. The person you have described needs to grow up and develop a sense of perspective.

I don’t know why you would think that, goodbye. I’m a bit confused! She’s someone I’m very fond of.

Bow - I think you are misunderstanding my point. We all feel sympathy for those against whom the system works. And if the system misidentifies disadvantage, it is not going to solve the problem.

If the system misidentifies disadvantage that’s because most systems are not perfect. They are confined by costs mostly. I think it’s odd that’s student would be so affected by this.

I was simply extrapolating from your very strong advocacy for privileged and by definition moneyed applicants using the 'skills' of consultants to help them in the process. I refer you to the guardian article to which I failed to link :)

(In short, I assume that you may well be one of the olived class).

Why odd? TBH she’s a superstar - perfect grades, very gorgeous, full of life, very natural. She’s not used to having people take pity on her and it threw her.

goodbye - you need to stop supposing and extrapolating and making gendered assumptions etc etc etc and just read posts

Maybe she can use it as an experience to help her empathise with those who are under privileged or disadvantaged in some way. If it threw her, imagine how it must feel for those who already feel out of depth and as though they don't belong to know that they are being treated as such by well meaning and not so well meaning people.