Why does Cambridge ask for UMS marks, and Oxford doesn ?
We started asking for UMS marks in order to ensure that we had consistent information about all our applicants. Prior to doing this we were told about some UMS performance (particularly highlights) in personal statements and references for some applicants, but nothing about others. This inconsistency made it impossible to use this information. Our experience is that, by and large, schools and colleges have welcomed our decision to ask for this information. They would rather we use finer-grained information available from the public examination system to help the selection process rather than placing further weight on interview performance or introducing further admissions tests.
