Cambridge University to scrap centuries-old custom to scale back college students’ stress | UK | News | EUROtoday

The prestigious University of Cambridge is about to axe a centuries-old custom, together with different measures, to enhance college students’ well-being. The longstanding follow of telling Cambridge-goers their examination rankings has been dropped to scale back stress. Known because the “class lists”, students were able to see where they ranked within their cohort based on exam results.

However, the tradition will be scrapped in the next academic year over fears that it was having a negative effect on undergraduate mental health. Senior university officials voted on the matter after a task force claimed Cambridge had a “culture of overwork”. The transfer is a part of a wider initiative to implement a “healthy work-life balance” within the college. This consists of banning lectures on weekends and educating outdoors of 8am-8pm.

Historically, class lists, also referred to as tripos rankings, had been displayed for maths college students in 1748. The follow then shortly expanded to incorporate all departments, changing into a practice throughout the campus. Exam outcomes are publicly listed on a board outdoors of Cambridge’s head places of work.

However, over the previous decade, a prolonged marketing campaign befell to abolish the follow. Students had been supplied the chance to decide out of the rating board in 2017, earlier than the show boards had been scrapped in 2021. But, college students are nonetheless advised their positions upon receiving their examination outcomes.

From the subsequent educational yr, undergraduates will as a substitute should ask their supervisors for his or her rating in the event that they want to understand it. For those that rank excessive on the listing, prizes will nonetheless be awarded for his or her educational achievements.

The transfer has sparked backlash amongst lecturers who imagine the initiative will “delegitimise” levels and that competitiveness is one thing to be championed.

Douglas Hedley, professor of the philosophy of faith at Clare College, condemned the transfer, labelling it as “a systemic attack on our world-renowned university culture”.

“The ‘mental health’ justification is a mask for a pernicious and dangerous agenda,” he advised The Times. “It will cause more distress for students if their degrees are delegitimised by such egalitarian dogmatism.”

David Abulafia, emeritus professor of historical past at Gonville and Caius College supported Professor Hedley’s views, saying: “If competitiveness is seen as dangerous, one might as well bid goodbye to universities such as Cambridge, which should be seeking to identify outstanding excellence and to prepare people for life in a highly competitive world.”