Socioeconomic background still holding back students in chemistry, RSC report finds

Socioeconomic background is still a major force that can hold back chemistry students and influence their educational experiences, career aspirations and progression. That’s the conclusion of a new report by the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC), that surveyed 863 students from secondary school to postgraduate education in the UK.

The report notes that 37% of chemistry students came from higher socioeconomic backgrounds (SEB), compared with 11% from a lower SEB, and chemistry drew 4% more students from a higher SEBs than all other subjects between the 2019–20 and 2023–24 academic years. The findings join previous studies such as the University and College Union’s survey on social class in post-16 education, which found that socioeconomic background is still a barrier to success in academia. A 2022 analysis by Goldman Sachs reported that the UK ranked third from the bottom in social mobility, compared with other similarly developed countries.