by Saint Sal on Mon Jan 01, 1990 12:00 pm
Where I'm from (Caerphilly in S.E. Wales) we never got any sort of representatives from anywhere, even from Cardiff or Aberystwyth, which most of my comprehensive seem to go to. In fact, I kept getting strange looks and comments from the staff when I said I wanted to come to St Andrews; indeed, some actively came out and said that I shouldn't come here because it is not the right type of university for a girl of my type (from a predominantly working class area) and that I would never fit in.
Obviously I just ignored them.
However, it does raise the case, that the university may be targeting schools that are thought to contain a 'better' calibre of student than your bog-standard comprehensive or high school. Is there a bias? I'm not sure, but I've only met a few people here who have come here from a totally sttate education, as opposed to grammar school, public foundations, or grant maintained. It seems a shame that although there are plenty of talented and able would-be students in state schools, they may be over-looked due to some accident of either regional location or school catchment area.
There. Rant over. I'll go and do something constructive. No, not revision...