Opinion submitted by Cameron Boyle – Political Correspondent – Immigration Advice Service. NOTE: This is an opinion piece and not the opinion of the editorial team at Unity News Network (UNN). We are a forum for free speech and ideas and publish different opinions from others.
The term ‘Oxbridge’, and the images of scholars and spires which it evokes, means many different things to different people. While some eagerly anticipate graduating straight from Eton into the infamous Bullingdon Club, others decidedly reject such images; none, however, could rightly argue that either are places of outstanding economic or ethnic diversity. In recent years this has become a well-worn stereotype of the public perception of Oxbridge, and both establishments claim to be improving the admission rates of students from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds. Unfortunately, the truth behind these claims reveals a more unattractive reality.
In 2016, the total number of white students accepted by Oxford and Cambridge was 4205; in contrast, the number of accepted black students was a meagre 75. This numerical imbalance is an abhorrent feature of our supposedly ‘post-racial’ society, but it tells little of the day-to-day experiences of campus life for those 75 students. Timi Sotire, a student from Cambridge, has recounted stories of her fellow students ‘petting’ her afro and advising that she straighten her hair. Another student from Oxford recalled a similar encounter in her first-week at university, during which she was asked if she could be called ‘the n-word’. The complete lack of diversity at Oxbridge and the sheltered upbringings of Etonian alumni are both responsible for creating this intimidating and unfriendly environment, which makes an already stressful few years of studying a time of self-consciousness and fear for BAME students.
How, you may ask, are these conditions allowed to permeate throughout Britain’s two most highly-rated and well-known universities? One answer may lie in the restricted accessibility of a successful admission for BAME students, and in the limited liability of Oxbridge – and indeed any public institution – to be transparent in their pursuit of equality and diversity. A recent UN study found that BAME households are twice as likely to be in persistent poverty as white households. With the overwhelming majority of Oxbridge students coming from wealthy and privately-educated backgrounds, it is clear that a degree of socioeconomic bias plays its part in the constrained admission of BAME students. The Equality Act of 2010 has made it easy for this bias to be disguised by vapid claims of “efforts” being made towards equality and diversity. Kalwant Bhopal’s recent book White privilege: The myth of a post-racial society, refers to the public sector equality duty (PSED), which came into effect in 2011. While the PSED requires public institutions to eradicate discriminatory behaviour and actively encourage equality, there is no requirement for schools and other institutions to ‘keep records of how they have been actively addressing their equality duties’. Without enforced transparency, Oxford and Cambridge are free to claim – in defiance of reality – that the entrenched racial prejudice experienced by Timi Sotire and her fellow students is being seen to.
The socioeconomic divide also has an impact on the attainment of BAME students, as those without solid financial support from home may need to seek employment during their studies. A study by both UUK and NUS has found that there is an attainment gap of 10-15% at 29% of all UK universities. UCAS has similarly revealed that only 2% of black A-Level students achieved 3 A-Levels – a far cry from the minimum of 3 As that are required by the admissions teams at Oxbridge. Worryingly, this divide also echoes throughout life after education: for example, from 2007-2014 Pakistani men were paid on average £3.30 per hour less than their white counterparts. Similarly, only 8% of current MPs are non-white, with that figure an appalling example of ‘record-high’ diversity in the House of Commons.
While the reality of life for BAME citizens in Britain – with its almost impassable barriers to equality at each stage of development from education through to employment – is indeed shocking, matters are only going to be made more complex by the looming metamorphic shadow of Brexit on the horizon. The Higher Education Policy Institute predicts a 57% fall in the number of EU students admitted to UK universities in the wake of Brexit, as a result of the new imposition of higher-rate international fees on EU applicants. These higher-fees (and the additional costs and stresses of applying for a Tier 4 Student Visa) not only make the prospect of study in the UK less attractive, but for many they will make it an unattainable fantasy. Moreover, the UN has reported that spending cuts linked to Brexit are set to impose a 5% loss in the income of black households – twice the loss suffered by their white neighbours. The Financial Times has already reported a 14% drop in EU applications to Cambridge, and that figure can only be expected to grow in the coming years. It is reasonable to conclude that cutting the already poor diversity of these institutions so sharply will cause the fearful experiences of students like Timi to deteriorate further, mirroring the rise in racially-charged hate crimes throughout the country since the 2016 referendum.
It is self-evident that BAME students face substantial barriers when applying to and succeeding at Oxford and Cambridge, and even more so that the day-to-day experiences of these students differ wildly from those of their privileged white majorities. With the likelihood of a nightmarish no-deal Brexit scenario growing each day, the prospective spending cuts and travel barriers are set to even further impede the pursuit of diversity and equality – both in our universities and in the professional world which they precede. It is paramount that our top institutions begin to set higher standards of inclusivity and equality and truly break away from their history of exclusivity and racial bias. Hopefully they will begin to welcome people of all colours and backgrounds on their own initiative, and no longer pass the buck to the private donorship of Stormzy.
Harry Sanders is a content writer for the Immigration Advice Service, an organisation of immigration solicitors that help undocumented migrants to regulate their status.
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