Dear Rhys

I refer to your recent request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000
regarding MML applicants in 2021.

The information requested, insofar as it is held (noting that the current
undergraduate applications cycle is ongoing), is exempt under section
36(2)(c) of the Act because its disclosure would be likely to prejudice
the effective conduct of public affairs, in this case the integrity of the
College’s applications and admissions process which form a fundamental
part of its mission as an educational institution. (As the information
requested is statistical in nature, the opinion of the qualified person
did not need to be sought for this application of section 36.) The current
undergraduate applications cycle is ongoing and applications are still
being submitted and assessed. The College considers that the disclosure of
detailed statistics about applications made within the current cycle would
be likely to prejudice the notion of a fair and confidential admissions
process whereby each applicant has the same information at their disposal
and partial granular data is not disclosed to specific members of the
public while the process is ongoing. As this is a qualified exemption, the
College has considered whether, in all the circumstances of the case, the
public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest
in disclosing the information. The College considers that, while some
people might have an understandable private interest in these statistics,
there is no genuine public interest in them when set against the extensive
statistical information available about previous admissions cycles
published at [1]https://www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.u...
statistics, coupled with the prevailing public interest in maintaining a
level playing field in terms of the information available to all
applicants. Note that information about the College’s undergraduate
admissions process can be found at
[2]https://www.magd.cam.ac.uk/undergraduate .

This exemption has been applied following updated advice received from the
Office of Intercollegiate Services.

The College’s complaints procedure provides for an internal review of the
decisions regarding this response if you are dissatisfied with it.  You
should let me know if you wish to use it, letting me know your reasons for
dissatisfaction and any other matters to which the College should have
regard.  The review will be conducted by another officer of the College
who was not involved in responding to the original request. 

You have a right to apply to the Information Commissioner for a decision
whether, in any specified respect, your request to the College for
information has been dealt with in accordance with the requirements of the
Freedom of Information Act.  Details may be found on the Information
Commissioner’s website at [3]www.ico.gov.uk.

Kind regards

Kathryn

On behalf of the Freedom of Information Officer

Kathryn Gee

Secretary to the Assistant Bursar

Magdalene College, Cambridge CB3 0AG Tel: 01223 330575

Registered Charity Number 1137542

Please note that I work part-time so response times may vary

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References

Visible links
1. https://www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.u...
2. https://www.magd.cam.ac.uk/undergraduate
3. http://www.ico.gov.uk/