Student performance–university preference model: a framework for helping students choose the right A‐level subjects

Every year, many students in the UK fail to achieve a place at their preferred university because they took the wrong A-level subjects. This study aims to suggest a framework for helping students choose the right subjects. Data on student achievement in A-level examinations was obtained from a UK sixth form college over a four-year period. Statistical techniques were employed to support our hypothesis that a student’s choice of A-level subjects should be based on both a student’s ability and a university’s preference for particular subjects and grades. Despite the limitation of small sample size, a model has been created that will maximise a student’s chance of achieving a place at their university of choice. The model presented could easily be extended in future to incorporate more levels in each of the attributes considered, and in this way it could provide the optimal choice of subjects for each individual student given their particular aspirations.