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gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness
@gillwyness.bsky.social
4K followers 560 following 100 posts
Economist working on inequality and access to education. Deputy Director of @cepeo-ucl. Research associate of @cep-lse Research fellow @iza_bonn
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gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness @gillwyness.bsky.social · 1d
we could... and we do!
cep-lse.bsky.social
Centre for Economic Performance @cep-lse.bsky.social · 1d
Jo Blanden (CEP), @GillWyness.bsky.social (CEP), @Opmc1.bsky.social (UCL) and @LindseyMacmillan.bsky.social could explain why private school pupils are more likely to end up in higher-ranked HE courses than peers with similar grades.

Read:
Elite school students end up in better universities than expected, based on their grades | British Politics and Policy at LSE
Students of private and grammar schools are over-represented in elite universities, but only part of that is explained by better grades.
blogs.lse.ac.uk
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Reposted by Gill Wyness
jonathansimons.bsky.social
Jonathan Simons @jonathansimons.bsky.social · 9d
We do now :) www.publicfirst.co.uk/couting-the-...

Demand is a lot more elastic for non EU students than the previous estimates of EU students, so we’d expect to see a bigger drop off than the HO estimated
Counting the cost: Modelling the economic impact of a potential levy on international student fees - Public First
In May 2025, HM Government released a white paper called “Restoring Control over the Immigration System”. One policy proposed in this paper was a levy [...]
www.publicfirst.co.uk
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gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness @gillwyness.bsky.social · 9d
See more on HE's problems and solutions in our @cepeo-ucl.bsky.social briefing note:

ideas.repec.org/p/ucl/cepeob...
Higher Education funding: what's the problem and what are th
England's once world-leading Higher Education (HE) system has become increasingly fragile over the last decade, with students suffering from real financial hardship, and some universities rumoured to
ideas.repec.org
gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness @gillwyness.bsky.social · 9d
The grants will be paid for "by a new levy on international student fees."

Again no details. But assuming the unis will have to pay the levy, and will pass it on to students

Its success will depend on how inelastic international student demand is. We don't have great evidence on this.
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gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness @gillwyness.bsky.social · 9d
The grants will be targeted at students on "priority courses"

This could improve match between students and their degrees by signalling high value courses

Would benefit disadvantaged kids who are more likely to "undermatch"

www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/full/10....

but will also narrow options
University of Chicago Press Journals: Cookie absent
www.journals.uchicago.edu
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gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness @gillwyness.bsky.social · 9d
Many of us have been calling for the return of maintenance grants for a long time.

So its great to see this is finally (albeit partially) on the cards.

www.gov.uk/government/n...
Targeted maintenance grants for students to be reintroduced
Disadvantaged students studying priority courses will benefit from extra financial support to access and excel in higher education.
www.gov.uk
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Reposted by Gill Wyness
cepeo-ucl.bsky.social
UCL Centre for Education Policy & Equalising Opportunities @cepeo-ucl.bsky.social · 16d
New @cepeo-ucl.bsky.social working paper!

Estimating heterogeneous returns to college by cognitive and non-cognitive ability

by our @opmc1.bsky.social

econpapers.repec.org/RePEc:ucl:ce...
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Reposted by Gill Wyness
cepeo-ucl.bsky.social
UCL Centre for Education Policy & Equalising Opportunities @cepeo-ucl.bsky.social · Aug 21
GCSE results are out:

On the surface, today’s results seem cause for relative optimism.

Despite this cohort’s tough time — both final year at primary & first year of secondary were disrupted by COVID; rates of SEND and mental health issues also up among this group — there’s no results drop off.
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Reposted by Gill Wyness
ioe.bsky.social
UCL Institute of Education @ioe.bsky.social · Aug 17
Our academics on A-Level results day

@gillwyness.bsky.social: The slight improvement in those with top grades "masks striking inequalities in achievement"

@miriched.bsky.social: It's unsurprising universities are increasing recruitment "because funding is difficult to manage”
uclioe.info/4fCqEup
Two female students pointing to a desktop screen and discussing. Mat Wright for UCL.
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gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness @gillwyness.bsky.social · Aug 15
👋
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gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness @gillwyness.bsky.social · Aug 15
Do students who follow the "traditional" education pathway (A levels to HE) fare better than those following "non-standard" vocational / mixed pathways - including the infamous T Level?

Our PhD student @robbiemaris.bsky.social
has the answers, in his new paper:
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Reposted by Gill Wyness
cepeo-ucl.bsky.social
UCL Centre for Education Policy & Equalising Opportunities @cepeo-ucl.bsky.social · Aug 14
A level results are out! And as many have reported, there was an overall improvement in the proportion of students gaining the top grades.

But its not good news for everyone: with London & the South East continuing to pull away from the rest of the country, and boys slightly ahead of girls.
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Reposted by Gill Wyness
paul-ed-martin.bsky.social
Paul Martin @paul-ed-martin.bsky.social · Jul 31
Today the DfE have published their latest stats on widening participation in HE. Here are a few quick thoughts...
explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statist...
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gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness @gillwyness.bsky.social · Jul 31
My colleague @dominicpkelly.bsky.social has written a @cepeo-ucl.bsky.social briefing note which looks at how screen time in early childhood (0–5) affects attention and language development.

Read it below:
cepeo-ucl.bsky.social
UCL Centre for Education Policy & Equalising Opportunities @cepeo-ucl.bsky.social · Jul 31
That BBC screen time story that just hit your home screen?

Our new policy briefing is the must-read for parents, policymakers, and childcare providers: 3 clear, actionable recommendations based on the latest evidence on screen time and cognitive development.

🔗 econpapers.repec.org/paper/uclcep...
EconPapers: The effects of screentime in early years on attention and language
By Dominic Kelly; Abstract: Roughly 9 in 10 children under the age of 5 (defined here as `early childhood') watch video streaming services and
econpapers.repec.org
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Reposted by Gill Wyness
cepeo-ucl.bsky.social
UCL Centre for Education Policy & Equalising Opportunities @cepeo-ucl.bsky.social · Jul 31
That BBC screen time story that just hit your home screen?

Our new policy briefing is the must-read for parents, policymakers, and childcare providers: 3 clear, actionable recommendations based on the latest evidence on screen time and cognitive development.

🔗 econpapers.repec.org/paper/uclcep...
EconPapers: The effects of screentime in early years on attention and language
By Dominic Kelly; Abstract: Roughly 9 in 10 children under the age of 5 (defined here as `early childhood') watch video streaming services and
econpapers.repec.org
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gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness @gillwyness.bsky.social · Jul 30
The disparities appear to be linked to greater pupil confidence, lower risk aversion, and stronger financial safety nets among private-school students.

Parental strategy and school-level resources also play a role, with private institutions offering superior guidance
and support.
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gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness @gillwyness.bsky.social · Jul 30
Mechanisms: Its all about university application behavior.

Even the weakest private school students aim higher than their higher achieving state school peers.
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gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness @gillwyness.bsky.social · Jul 30
Private school students are more likely to overmatch - enrol in more selective uni courses than expected given their grades

This is especially true for low attaining students: where private-school pupils enrol in courses as much as 15 percentiles higher than low attainers from other school types
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gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness @gillwyness.bsky.social · Jul 30
In the UK, students from fee-paying private schools make up only 7% of the student body at age 16, yet elite positions in society (such as judges and civil servants) are dominated by their alumni.

Our aim is to understand the role these schools play in promoting access to selective universities.
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gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness @gillwyness.bsky.social · Jul 30
📝New @cepeo-ucl.bsky.social working paper

Why are students from elite high schools much more likely to go to high ranked university courses than equally qualified students from the state sector? 🤔

w @opmc1.bsky.social @lindseymacmillan.bsky.social & Jo Blanden

econpapers.repec.org/RePEc:ucl:ce...
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Reposted by Gill Wyness
cepeo-ucl.bsky.social
UCL Centre for Education Policy & Equalising Opportunities @cepeo-ucl.bsky.social · Jul 21
New @feweek.bsky.social op-ed from our PhD student @robbiemaris.bsky.social

showing huge improvements in literacy and numeracy for young adults between 2012 and 2023...

but a very concerning lack of progress for the lowest performing students

feweek.co.uk/bottom-10-pe...
Bottom 10% of GCSE retakers missing out on subject success
A decade of GCSE resits and curriculum reforms saw England’s young adults surging up global skills rankings
feweek.co.uk
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Reposted by Gill Wyness
matthewakraft.com
Matthew A Kraft @matthewakraft.com · Jul 17
In 2022, as I was tucking my then 7-year-old son into bed he said to me in a sleepy haze

"Dad, global warming is bad. What are we going to do?"

This❓from out of the blue ROCKED me

I've spent the last several years searching for an answer

Let me tell you about that journey & where I've landed

🧵
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gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness @gillwyness.bsky.social · Jul 15
Its their first choice...

Once the applicant gets their offers from unis, they have to choose their "firm" (i.e. first choice) and "insurance" (i.e. second choice). If they get the grades to get into their firm choice, they are committed to attending.
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gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness @gillwyness.bsky.social · Jul 14
More stats here: www.ucas.com/advisers/hel...
Predicted grades – what you need to know for entry this year | UCAS
Guidance and support for advisers when predicting grades.
www.ucas.com
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gillwyness.bsky.social
Gill Wyness @gillwyness.bsky.social · Jul 14
Among those predicted AAA, of those who achieved 2 grades below their prediction (i.e. ABB), 75% were still accepted to their selected firm choice course...
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