Does elite education help or harm social mobility?
Lead Research Organisation:
Institute for Fiscal Studies
Abstract
Elite degrees are widely assumed to be a crucial gateway to power and influence in British society. The statistics appear compelling: despite educating less than 1% of England's population, “Oxbridge” graduates are disproportionately represented in key leadership roles (Sutton Trust, 2019), while Russell Group graduates earn substantially more than graduates from other universities. Medicine stands alongside Oxbridge as one of Britain's most prestigious and highest-paying degree pathways. Private school alumni dominate these elite routes, comprising around 30% of both Oxbridge and medical students despite representing just 7% of students. If these pathways truly drive access to power and influence, their domination by such a small, privileged segment of society has profound implications for social mobility.
Yet the empirical evidence on whether elite degrees are a key driver of opportunity is surprisingly weak. We don't know whether elite degrees actually drive access to top careers, or whether the same attributes that help students access them would lead to success regardless. We don't know how exactly advantaged groups maintain their grip on these pathways - whether through superior academic achievement, application behaviours, or other advantages - nor whether expanding access would deliver the same benefits to all.
This research programme aims to better understand the importance of elite education for social mobility in British society, and to ensure education policy is built on robust evidence. New data linkages and major policy reforms make these aims achievable. By connecting detailed administrative records from schools, universities, tax returns, and - crucially - the complete national database of university applications, we can track individuals from secondary school through university and into their careers. The data also reveal student networks within schools and universities, allowing us to examine how peers influence both educational choices and the returns to those choices. Combined, these rich data sources allow us to examine precisely how access to and returns from elite degrees vary across social groups, disentangling the roles of academic achievement, application behaviour, subject and peer effects in ways that previous research could not address.
Significant reforms in both university admissions and medical education provide additional leverage for understanding what happens when we try to expand access to elite degrees. Universities have implemented major policies that expand access to elite degrees for disadvantaged students, while the opening of new medical schools across England represents the largest-ever expansion of medical training. These parallel developments allow us to examine whether expanded access delivers genuine opportunities for social mobility, or whether it fundamentally alters the benefits these pathways provide.
The research will generate substantial societal benefits. It will test whether current policy emphasis on widening access to elite education is the right approach for promoting social mobility. By examining whether students from different backgrounds receive comparable benefits, we can assess if expanding access alone is sufficient. Broadening access to elite education could lead to more efficient allocation of talent and boost productivity - but only if the benefits extend equally to all groups. Our analysis will provide actionable insights for universities and policymakers to reshape the educational pipeline and the demographic makeup of influential professions.
Our unique partnership with the Department for Education provides both unprecedented access to linked administrative data and a clear channel for translating our research into practical policies to promote educational opportunity and social mobility in the UK.
Yet the empirical evidence on whether elite degrees are a key driver of opportunity is surprisingly weak. We don't know whether elite degrees actually drive access to top careers, or whether the same attributes that help students access them would lead to success regardless. We don't know how exactly advantaged groups maintain their grip on these pathways - whether through superior academic achievement, application behaviours, or other advantages - nor whether expanding access would deliver the same benefits to all.
This research programme aims to better understand the importance of elite education for social mobility in British society, and to ensure education policy is built on robust evidence. New data linkages and major policy reforms make these aims achievable. By connecting detailed administrative records from schools, universities, tax returns, and - crucially - the complete national database of university applications, we can track individuals from secondary school through university and into their careers. The data also reveal student networks within schools and universities, allowing us to examine how peers influence both educational choices and the returns to those choices. Combined, these rich data sources allow us to examine precisely how access to and returns from elite degrees vary across social groups, disentangling the roles of academic achievement, application behaviour, subject and peer effects in ways that previous research could not address.
Significant reforms in both university admissions and medical education provide additional leverage for understanding what happens when we try to expand access to elite degrees. Universities have implemented major policies that expand access to elite degrees for disadvantaged students, while the opening of new medical schools across England represents the largest-ever expansion of medical training. These parallel developments allow us to examine whether expanded access delivers genuine opportunities for social mobility, or whether it fundamentally alters the benefits these pathways provide.
The research will generate substantial societal benefits. It will test whether current policy emphasis on widening access to elite education is the right approach for promoting social mobility. By examining whether students from different backgrounds receive comparable benefits, we can assess if expanding access alone is sufficient. Broadening access to elite education could lead to more efficient allocation of talent and boost productivity - but only if the benefits extend equally to all groups. Our analysis will provide actionable insights for universities and policymakers to reshape the educational pipeline and the demographic makeup of influential professions.
Our unique partnership with the Department for Education provides both unprecedented access to linked administrative data and a clear channel for translating our research into practical policies to promote educational opportunity and social mobility in the UK.