Runnymede Trust calls for greater diversity at universities in the UK

Published: 18/04/2011

People looking to study English in the UK 'can stay for longer'

Those planning to charge £9,000 a year for university entry in the UK must take steps to increase the diversity of its pupils, it has been claimed.

Dr Rob Berkeley, director of race equality think tank the Runnymede Trust, said that prime minister David Cameron was correct in raising the issue of a lack of ethnic minorities attending university in the UK.

Mr Cameron highlighted recently that only one person of Afro-Caribbean descent went to Oxford University last year and Dr Berkeley thinks more needs to be done to improve the situation.

"We would like those universities seeking to charge £9,000 per year in tuition fees to take their commitment to including talent from all backgrounds seriously and to see this reflected in the ethnic make-up of our top universities," he added.

Oxford University recently rebuked the prime minister's statement, saying that 41 undergraduates with black backgrounds were admitted to the institution, with 22 per cent of the university's total population being from ethnic minority groups.

Posted by Keith Broomer

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