Private schools must accept that they will place fewer students in Oxbridge, warned the Vice Chancellor of Cambridge.
Professor Stephen Tuop said the “premium” for independent education was in decline.
He said the increased enrollment of children from public schools in Cambridge – which rose from 68.7% in 2019 to 72% last year – was “real progress”.
Heads of private schools have criticized the imposition of independent institutions against their state counterparts.
They claim that private schools have helped create public schools and that many students in public schools are of rich descent.
However, Robert Halfon, chairman of the Tories Committee on Education, said the status quo was “unequal” and more changes were needed to ensure “meritocracy”.
Professor Tuup, a Canadian who leaves office this September, told The Times: “I would never go in and say that the system is fundamentally wrong and must be completely overthrown.
“I would say that we need to continue to show very, very clearly that we intend to reduce over time the number of people who come from independent schools in places like Oxford or Cambridge.
“We do it by greeting others, not by telling these people that we don’t want you. We would like individual students who are talented, but they will compete against a growing pool because there are more students coming from public schools who see a potential place for themselves at Cambridge, Oxford or other Russell Group universities. ”
About seven percent of children attend private schools, with the share of sixth-graders estimated at about 12 percent.
Public school students accounted for 72% of admissions to Cambridge last September. Admission to public schools increased by 70.6% in 2020 and 68.7% in 2019.
The Cambridge benchmark set by the Agency for Higher Education Statistics, although not an official target, was 76 per cent public school enrollment in 2020.
Professor Tuup, a Harvard graduate, said he was “not a big fan of social engineering projects” and that moving away from independent schools was a process “that will change over time”.
He said Cambridge could introduce new indicators, including high school recruitment and eligibility for free school meals, as going to public school is not an accurate measure of socio-economic background.
Prof Troope also welcomed scholarships for black students funded by rapper Stormzy, which helped expand participation.
He told The Times: “We are not solving all these problems just by having more people coming from public schools. We are much more interested in looking at data on deprivation and free school meals, which we think gives us a better picture. “
But Barnaby Lennon, chairman of the Council of Independent Schools and former head of Harrow, told the paper: “Contextual admission is only a reasonable part of the selection process, if applied correctly. It is unfortunate that this debate is so often presented as independent against the state. “
He said independent schools support their state counterparts and are responsible for helping the best universities choose from a wider field.
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