The case for admitting non-standard entrants (NSEs) to higher education is examined in the light of experience at Bradford and Ilkley Community College over a ten-year period. The data and conclusions are based upon a case-study of the social characteristics, academic performance, educational experience and subsequent careers of over 1000 students, almost three-quarters of whom were NSEs. It examines one college's attempt to operationalise a flexible admissions policy and the lessons to be drawn from its experience. The main conclusions of the paper are as follows. (1)Access to higher education can be increased for people from working class backgrounds, women and ethnic minorities provided that institutional policies are mediated effectively through departmental sub-cultures. (2)NSEs do not pose a threat to academic standards. (3)In terms of teaching methods and curriculum design, NSEs do not necessitate a radically different institutional response from that required for the effective teaching of standard entrants.
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Mills et al. (1989) studied this question.