Academics reject shake-up of degree classification

By Tim Castle

LONDON (Reuters) - Leading academics have abandoned proposals for a radical shake-up of the country's 200-year-old classification of honours degrees after failing to win support for their plans.

A committee of university leaders had proposed simplifying the current division of degrees to just three classes -- pass, fail or distinction.

But after a three-year consultation, the academics opted in a report published on Tuesday for the more modest aim of including a two-page explanation of a student's degree record alongside the final classification.

Leicester University Vice-Chancellor Bob Burgess, who led the consultation, said the committee had dropped recommendations to change the current system after negative feedback from universities, students and employers.

While there was a widespread view that the current classification into first, upper second, lower second and third classes was unsatisfactory, there was little appetite for radical change.

Some felt the proposed pass/fail/distinction split was too broad, while a proposal from employers to split the existing upper second class into two further divisions was also rejected, Burgess said.

The consultation was commissioned by universities to address concerns that employers and others focus too much on the final classification of a degree at the expense of the work done by a student during their course.

"Students work very hard to gain a degree over a three or four-year period," Burgess said.