Universities competing with each other have overhauled degree marking to “ratchet up” the number of students getting firsts, a report discloses.
The inquiry by Reform, the think tank, comes as the new student watchdog begins investigating grade inflation.
The report said that half of universities had altered the way they calculated the marking of degrees.
The rise in the number of firsts and 2:1s being handed out meant that degree classifications were becoming “meaningless”, the study said.
The Office for Students responded to the report, saying that grade inflation was not “in the interest” of graduates. It is understood to be investigating the issue with some urgency.
The proportion of firsts awarded rose at the fastest rate on record last year with 26 per cent of students getting the top grade, compared with 15 per cent in 2012, the year that fees were trebled to £27,000, and 8 per cent in 1995.
