Britain’s system for classifying undergraduate degrees should be completely overhauled, according to a report issued today by a steering group established by Universities UK, the organization that represents British universities’ chief executives, and the Guild of Higher Education, which represents higher-education colleges.
The report labels the current system, which has been in use for more than two centuries, “no longer fit for purpose,” saying it “cannot describe, and therefore does not do full justice to, the range of knowledge, skills, experience, and attributes of a graduate in the 21st century.”
Under the current system, graduates can earn an honors degree classified as a First, an Upper Second, a Lower Second, a Third, a Pass, or a Fail. The growing number of First and Upper Second degrees being awarded, especially at top universities, helped prompt the review, which began in 2004. The report acknowledges that “some commentators consider undesirable ‘grade inflation’ to be in operation,” but it avoids addressing “whether this is a real, or simply perceived, phenomenon.”
Saying that “when they leave university, graduates deserve more than a single number to sum up their achievements,” the report recommends that a new Higher Education Achievement Report be carried out by 2010. The new classification would include an expanded transcript as well as the European Diploma Supplement, which British universities are required to introduce as part of the Bologna Process, an effort to synchronize European degree systems and facilitate mobility for students, researchers, and academics throughout the 47 participating nations. At least initially, the new Higher Education Achievement Report would coexist with the traditional honors classifications.
The National Union of Students, Britain’s main student organization, welcomed the proposals in a statement. “The existing four-point system, with its arbitrary cutoff points, does not adequately reflect a student’s achievements,” the statement said. The student group called for the report’s recommendations to be carried out speedily. —Aisha Labi
