Beating the odds

Our students beat the odds on A level results day to secure places at leading universities

In the UK today disadvantaged young people are five times less likely to go to a top university than their more advantaged peers.

This year we see the first “normal” results day since the pandemic hit in early 2020. However, results this year are expected to be lower and education specialists are predicting that the disadvantage gap will increase. That is in no small part due to the disruption in education that started more than two years ago.

Our students were twice as likely to place at a top university, compared to statistically similar students.

We support students from disadvantaged backgrounds to access top universities, through a unique combination of tuition and in-school mentoring. We work with them to make good applications, get the grades and transition to university. You can read more about our impact here.

Ridwan is going to study Dentistry at King’s and wants to “remove any stigma towards dentistry as a whole.”

Ridwan grew up in a South Asian family in London, where he attended Chelsea Academy. On A level results day, Ridwan has secured a place at King’s College London to study Dentistry, getting an incredible three A*s!  He is on the path to become “the kind of dentist that can help as many people as possible.”

Three years on The Access Project

Ridwan joined The Access Project at the start of Year 11. “I decided to join because I needed a lot of help with English. I was getting 8 or 9 in most subjects, and a steady 4 in English, so it was easy to identify that difference. The Access Project helped me get from a grade 4 to a grade 7 in English by the end of that year.”

Najibah got A*A*AB and is going to study her dream course at UCL

Najibah grew up in London and attended George Green’s School. Today she has secured a place at University College London (UCL) to study Arts and Sciences, getting A*A*AB. “It has been incredible to have such a focused and personal source of support that has helped me get accepted to all five of my shortlisted universities” Najibah tells us.

“I am grateful for the advice and encouragement my tutor readily offered me”

Najibah joined The Access Project in Year 10. “I was generally positive about my academic abilities, but I lacked confidence in English leading up to GCSEs. I applied for English tuition as I thought I would benefit from some extra support in achieving the exceptional grades I was aiming for.”

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