17 March 2010
Dear F.L. Hunter
Thank you for your email of 20 February 2010 requesting information about the
University of Edinburgh’s undergraduate admissions policy. I am pleased to enclose
most of the requested information.
1.
I would like a copy of your Undergraduate Admissions Policy, along with
minutes from any meetings over the last three years where changes to this policy
have been discussed.
Much of the information you request is available on the University website. In
particular, may I point you towards:
The University of Edinburgh’s Admissions Principles
http://www.ed.ac.uk/studying/undergraduate/applications-
admissions/guidance/principles
College of Humanities & Social Science selection criteria and processes:
http://www.hss.ed.ac.uk/Undergraduate/prospective/infoschools.htm
College of Science & Engineering Admissions Policy:
http://www.scieng.ed.ac.uk/Undergraduate/Tellme.asp
MBChB Admissions Selectors’ Handbook
http://docstore.mvm.ed.ac.uk/PoliciesAndProcedures/Undergraduate/Handbook.pdf
BVM&S Admissions Policy
http://www.ed.ac.uk/schools-departments/vet/studying/uk-eu-school-leavers/how-to-
apply/admissions-policy
I have attached extracts of minutes from meetings held since February 2007 at which
changes to the University’s undergraduate admissions policy have been discussed.
You will notice that parts of these documents have been blacked out. This is
because, although the University holds all the information you requested, I cannot
supply you with all of it, as the University admissions policy is currently undergoing
review, and the disclosure of this information would substantially prejudice the
effective conduct of public affairs. The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002
does not require us to provide this sort of information as it is exempt under section
30c.
2.
I would like a copy of the standard letter you send making an offer
(conditional and unconditional) to a prospective student; and a copy of the standard
letter you send rejecting an applicant.
The University does not have a standard offer letter. It does not communicate its
admissions decisions directly to undergraduate applicants. Instead, decisions are
transmitted electronically by the University to the Universities & Colleges Admissions
Service (UCAS), which provides these decisions to applicants via the online UCAS
Track service. Details of any conditions attached to an offer are included in this
communication from UCAS. Any applicant who has not been successful is welcome
to request feedback on their application.
The University does write to each applicant to whom an offer has been made, in
order to explain the next stages of the admissions process, and to give information
about academic year dates, opportunities to visit, provision for disabled students,
University accommodation, and so on. The content of the letter varies according to
an applicant’s age, domicile, tuition fee status and the programme to which an
applicant has applied, in order that they receive information that is pertinent to them.
3.
I would like you to confirm the average time taken to respond to
Undergraduate applicants last year, with details of whether this varies depending on
the type of offer made; or whether there is variation across the different academic
areas of the University.
The University does not monitor the time taken to respond to undergraduate
applications. All applications submitted prior to the UCAS deadlines (e.g. 15 October
for Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, 15 January for all other UK/EU applications)
are given equal consideration. The time taken to respond to an application varies
according to the programme to which an applicant has applied, the level of
competition for entry to a programme and the strength of an application. In general,
the very strongest and weakest applications are responded to most quickly. The
initial response may be an offer, a rejection, or an invitation to attend for interview or
submit a portfolio in order for an application to be considered further. In accordance
with the rules of the UCAS scheme, all applications submitted by the 15 January
UCAS deadline are responded to by 31 March.
Copyright in the information you have been given belongs to the University of
Edinburgh or to another party. Copyright material must not be copied, distributed,
modified, reproduced, transmitted, published (including published on the Internet or
an intranet), or otherwise made available in whole or in part without the prior written
consent of the copyright holder.
If you are dissatisfied with this response, you may ask the University to conduct a
review of this decision. To do this, please contact the University in writing (including
by fax, letter or email) or in some other recorded form (e.g. audio or video tape),
describe the original request, explain your grounds for dissatisfaction, and include an
address for correspondence. You have 40 working days from receipt of this letter to
submit a review request. When the review process has been completed, if you are
still dissatisfied, you may ask the Scottish Information Commissioner to intervene.
Yours sincerely
Rebecca Gaukroger
Admissions Service Manager
