The CUSU team travelled from Cambridge to Westminster and presented the petition to Michael Gove, the Secretary of State for Education, at the Department for Education.
Cambridge MP Julian Huppert met the student campaigners at the DfE to lend his support.
He said: “I am very concerned by these proposed changes. It is right that we give students the opportunity to really think about what they are learning, rather than just constantly assessing small components.
“AS levels as they currently exist, however, are also extremely useful for university admissions as they are a good indicator of how a student will do in their final A level exams. Without them, I fear that admissions interviewers, and I used to be one, would be forced to use other less accurate measures which would be likely to lead to less social mobility.”
Vicky Hudson, CUSU Access Officer, said “We believe that fair admissions to university will be jeopardised by the loss of AS levels as they currently stand. Good results in their end of year twelve exams give students the confidence to aim higher. This is particularly important for students who, like me, are first in their family to aim for higher education, and those from non-traditional backgrounds.
“Many of the students who signed our petition added their personal testimonies about how their AS results gave them the confidence to see Cambridge as a realistic ambition.
“We urge Michael Gove to listen to students about the importance of end of year 12 exams. Our petition shows that these reforms would be detrimental to a generation.”
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For further information view the CUSU website: www.cusu.cam.ac.uk/