Update on 26 August
The Admissions Round has almost reached its conclusion now, and we are looking forward to welcoming our new first years at the start of the Michaelmas Term. The next few weeks will be an exciting time for them, and we will do everything we can to help them settle into Trinity Hall as quickly as possible. As things stand, the intake will be our largest ever, and 73% of the freshers will come from schools and colleges in the maintained sector. This percentage is in line with the sector percentage we saw when we received the applications last October.
Update on 18 August following the Government announcement on 17 August
After the statement from Ofqual on Monday 17 August, we are currently working with our colleagues across the University to determine the next steps for the current Admissions round. The following University webpage summarises the present situation: www.cam.ac.uk/coronavirus/news/statement-on-undergraduate-admissions-18-august-2020
Original statement, 16 August 2020
This has been a challenging time for all students, their families, and their teachers, and a distressing time for some. From March onwards, we have been in regular contact with all our offer-holders, and, since the A-level results were released, we have received numerous messages from alumni and others concerned about the way school examination results have been determined this year, not just in the UK but worldwide.
Over the last few days, we have assessed on a case-by-case basis the performance of all offer-holders who missed their required grades, including candidates pooled by other colleges – and we have looked especially closely at those individuals whose marks were algorithmically downgraded. Our Admissions process is always an holistic one that considers a range of performance indicators (e.g., the school examination record, the school reference letter, the personal statement, submitted written work, performance in the admissions assessments, performance in the interviews, and contextual data which reveal social disadvantage more overtly than school type alone). This year we have sought to be flexible, compassionate, and fair in confirming places for some of those who narrowly missed their offers, and to be attentive to the unprecedented manner in which examination grades have been awarded. As things stand, 70% of our new intake will come from the maintained sector (an increase from 67% in 2019).
In addition, we will of course honour any offers met following successful appeals, and we will also defer the offers for any offer-holders who are successful in the autumn examinations, so that they can take up their places in 2021.
