Essay plan:

TOTALLY DISAGREE

Body 1:

- Difficult for the numbers of males and females to be equal -> explain: universities need to have an
equal number of applicants -> Explain: the numbers of students may vary based on the nature of the
subjects -> examples: design is chosen by females, engineering is chosen by males.

Body 2:

- Universities should base their admission on students’ merits -> explain: select the best candidates
based on qualifications -> explain: ensure fairness -> explain: as long as they work hard, they will be
successful -> explain: give students an incentive to study.

Some people believe that the numbers of students of both genders attending every course
at university should be equal. Personally, I completely disagree with this point of view.

To begin with, it would be extremely difficult for the numbers of males and females in every
subject to be equal. To have the same numbers of male and female students studying a
subject, universities need to have equal numbers of applicants for that subject, and then
they will allocate these students into one class. It is almost impossible to manage this
process, because the numbers of students may vary differently based on the nature of
the subject. For example, design is a course that tends to preferred more by females than
by males, while engineering is often chosen by male students rather than female
counterparts.

In my opinion, universities should base their admission to their courses on the merits of
students instead of their genders. They should select the best candidates for each course
according to their qualifications, regardless genders. This will ensure the fairness for every
student who wants to attend university courses. The message to these students is that as
long as they work hard enough, they will have the opportunity to study at their desired
university. This incentive can result in students making a great deal of effort to study, and in
turn will be an increasing number of well-educated individuals who can positively
contribute to society.

In conclusion, I strongly believe that it would be unrealistic ad wrong to base the admission
to university courses on genders instead of students’ merits.

(band 8.0)
In my opinion, men and women should have the same educational opportunities. However, I
do not agree with the idea of accepting equal proportions of each gender in every university
subject.

Having the same number of men and women on all degree courses is simply unrealistic.
Student numbers on any course depend on the applications that the institution receives. If a
university decided to fill courses with equal numbers of males and females, it would need
enough applicants of each gender. In reality, many courses are more popular with one
gender than the other, and it would not be practical to aim for equal proportions. For
example, nursing courses tend to attract more female applicants, and it would be difficult to
fill these courses if fifty per cent of the places needed to go to males.

Apart from the practical concerns expressed above, I also believe that it would be unfair to
base admission to university courses on gender. Universities should continue to select the
best candidates for each course according to their qualifications. In this way, both men and
women have the same opportunities, and applicants know that they will be successful if they
work hard to achieve good grades at school. If a female student is the best candidate for a
place on a course, it is surely wrong to reject her in favour of a male student with lower
grades or fewer qualifications.

In conclusion, the selection of university students should be based on merit, and it would be
both impractical and unfair to change to a selection procedure based on gender.

(band 9.0)