Analysis of LNAT results 2008-9 by gender, ethnicity, school and parental occupation

Thursday, 21 Jan 2010

Since 2007 the LNAT Consortium has carried out annual impact analyses of the LNAT score of UK based candidates against socio-economic factors such as gender, school background, and parental background in order to monitor the LNAT’s affect on various demographic groupings. Findings so far have been encouraging; in July 2007, for instance, we were able to show that school background did not influence performance in the test. 

We are pleased to report that the analysis of tests taken this year mirrors previous findings. This is the second year that the Consortium has published an analysis of all scores for a test year. The latest review incorporates results for candidates who took the test between 1September 2008 and 30 June 2009.  

The latest figures deviate very little from the previous sets of data. The LNAT score is based on the multiple-choice section of the test. The difference in performance between female and male candidates remains constant at less than one mark, with the average score for males at 16.96 and for females at  16.38. Candidates at comprehensive schools continue to score in the same range as candidates from grammar or independent schools (17.03, 17.76 and 17.36 respectively) with, again, a difference of less than a mark.     
We have noted an increase in the gap between highest and lowest performers based on ethnic background and parental occupation. So  far as ethnic background is concerned, in both years the lowest scores were found in  the Bangladeshi grouping and the highest in White Irish/British, but the difference has increased from 3.44 in 2007/08 to 4.61 for 2008/09. Last year the lowest scoring candidates in the parental background category were those
whose parents or guardians were unemployed  (15.39), and the highest scoring those from senior professional backgrounds (17.48). This year the lowest scoring group comes from the category “process plant or machine operative” with an average of 13.85, while those from senior professional backgrounds scored 17.04. The average score overall is slightly lower this year, at 16.4 compared to 17 last year.  
 
The full data for 2008/09 and data published in previous years is available on the website.  
 
For further information contact:-
 
Dr Liora Lazarus
Chair, LNAT
St Anne’s College
Oxford
OX2 6HS
Liora.lazarus@st-annes.ox.ac.uk
www.lnat.ac.uk
 
21 January 2010