Score system could make hiring easier for graduate employers
Graduates should be awarded point scores alongside the existing degree grades, a new report has said, something which would make hiring easier for large graduate employers like accountants or law firms.
The report, authored by the national Grade Point Average (GPA) Advisory Group, said that the point system offers a fairer, more effective means of recruiting graduates.
This is because it offers a more detailed picture of a student's performance during their time at university, and is particularly helpful given an increasing number are graduating with upper second or first class degrees.
"There are early indications that large employers would welcome the transparency of GPA and availability of a cumulative measure of achievement for pre-graduation recruitment activities," it said.
Critics of the current system have said that it fails to sufficiently differentiate between student's performance, lacks wide international recognition as well as transparency over how they are calculated.
Professor Sir Bob Burgess, chair of the GPA advisory group, said:
GPA offers an important opportunity to meet the vital need for a more precise indicator of degree grades and to provide students with a more internationally recognisable measure.
Our recommendations have been carefully constructed to build upon the evidence from the sector regarding the appetite and capacity for change.
A process of 'dual running' will allow institutions to adopt GPA within timescales that suit their institutional context whilst ensuring that a national system is retained.
The report is a product of pilot schemes featuring points-based measurements of student performance which have been run by 21 universities.
An additional 32 higher education providers attended facilitated meetings about the pilot.
How would it work?
The "grade point average" (GPA) system would reflect how a student performed throughout their entire time at university. It would be in addition to the current system which awards them with a degree classification such as first, upper second (2:1), lower second (2:2) and third class degrees.
The "grant point average" system would offer a scale between 0 and 4.25, as laid out below, with each individual university still able to decide how they would award points.
| Grade | Percentage mark | Grade point |
|---|---|---|
| A+ | 75 or more | 4.25 |
| A | 71 – 74 | 4.0 |
| A- | 67 – 70 | 3.75 |
| B+ | 64 – 66 | 3.50 |
| B | 61 – 63 | 3.25 |
| B- | 57-60 | 3.0 |
| C+ | 54-56 | 2.75 |
| C | 50-53 | 2.50 |
| C- | 48-49 | 2.25 |
| D+ | 43-47 | 2.0 |
| D | 40-42 | 1.50 |
| D- | 38-39 | 1.0 |
| F+ | 35-37 | 0.75 |
| F | 30-34 | 0.50 |
| F- | 29 or less | 0.0 |