To roughly translate and apply a Mirpuri proverb, these days if you pick up a stone the chances are that there will be a degree lying under it. The widening participation agenda has done more than widen access to higher education. In the process, the content has been dumbed down. So much I was able to glean from the pages of the Times Higher while I was working at a leading University. There was scarcely an issue that didn’t contain academic moans about declining standards.
Given this, the arrogance displayed by some Mirpuri parents when talking about their graduate children is totally misplaced. Of course, there are some very high achievers, both academically and in careers. For these, actions speak louder than words: their self evident position makes unnecessary any overt arrogance. In general, however, going to a University (normally a post-92 one; i.e. an ex-Poly) is no big deal. You don’t even need decent A, level grades to do so. No wonder academics complain about students who can’t spell or construct a half decent paragraph.
