The Telegraph reveals for the first time a sharp drop in the rate of admissions for independent school pupils
State school pupils are more likely to get into the University of Cambridge than their private school counterparts for the first time amid a discrimination row, The Telegraph can reveal.
The 800-year-old university has been accused of “social engineering” after Freedom of Information requests revealed a sharp drop in the rate of offers and acceptances for private school pupils.
It comes weeks before more than 20,000 applicants will find out whether they have been invited for an interview to compete for around 3,700 undergraduate places.
The university has seen a drive to boost numbers from state schools and disadvantaged backgrounds led by Prof Stephen Toope, who stood down as the university’s vice-chancellor last month. He will be replaced next year by Prof Deborah Prentice, the American provost of Princeton University who has been commended for her diversity drive at the Ivy League university.