A new report has proposed that universities should face downgrades in their official ratings if black students significantly underperform and academic staff lack racial diversity. The controversial paper, authored by Dr Katharine Hubbard of Buckinghamshire New University, calls for the higher education watchdog to incorporate 'racial equity' metrics when assessing institutions.
Targeting the Teaching Excellence Framework
Dr Hubbard's main focus is the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF), administered by the Office for Students regulator. This framework currently awards universities gold, silver, or bronze ratings based primarily on teaching quality, with results published online for prospective students. Under her proposal, 'racial equity' and 'proportionate representation of global majority staff' would become key metrics in this assessment process.
The Stark Statistics Behind the Proposal
The report emerges against a backdrop of concerning data about racial disparities in higher education. Recent figures show that only 1 per cent of academics in UK universities are black, while just 17 per cent of black students achieve first-class degrees compared to 36 per cent of their white peers. Dr Hubbard's flag-based system would identify institutions with significant inequities in either student outcomes or staff representation, adjusting TEF ratings accordingly.
She revealed that currently, seven gold-rated universities have black awarding gaps exceeding 25 percentage points, while more than half of gold and silver institutions significantly under-recruit black academics. The paper, published by the Higher Education Policy Institute, further notes that among 164 vice-chancellors nationwide, only two are black.
A Call for Structural Change
Dr Hubbard argues that racial inequity represents a structural issue requiring structural solutions. 'Can an institution really be considered gold standard when it has a black awarding gap of over 25 percentage points and students never encounter a black academic?' she questioned. 'If racial inequity is a structural issue, we can only tackle it through changing structures.'
Her report concludes: 'Imagine how much more seriously the sector might take inequity in academic hiring if TEF success depended on having representative proportions of global majority staff. Institutions seeing their TEF gold rating being adjusted to silver or bronze on the basis of large persistent ethnicity awarding gaps might take much more meaningful action.'
Controversial Reactions and Sector Response
The proposal has sparked strong reactions across the education sector. Chris McGovern of the Campaign for Real Education criticised the plan as 'demeaning and patronising towards black people,' arguing that 'position and status should be based on merit' and warning that the proposal has 'very sinister undertones.'
Meanwhile, a Universities UK spokesman acknowledged that 'racial inequity persists in higher education' and stated that 'the sector must continue to build on work to confront this issue head-on to ensure that everyone with the potential to succeed at university can do so, regardless of their background.'
Dr Hubbard, who serves as director of learning enhancement and academic practice with research focusing on 'inclusive practice,' maintains that 'the metrics we use in higher education are active political choices. Which metrics are included and excluded from league tables and regulatory frameworks drive institutional behaviours.' Her analysis suggests that up to one in five universities could see their ratings change if racial equity metrics were implemented.
