White working-class students and black British students risk missing out if schools focus on A-Levels as the main pathway to professional success, a think-tank warns today.

The Social Market Foundation (SMT) said that the emphasis on A-Levels as the only route into university tends to benefit affluent white young people, and excludes those from working class and/or ethnic minority backgrounds who are more likely to follow other routes.

The think tank reported that over half of white working-class and black British youth use BTEC qualifications to get into higher education (HE). In the north east, 35% of white working-class students went to university solely on the basis of their BTECs; and 37% of all black British youth go to university with only BTECs.

The SMF called on the Government to raise the national profile of vocational and apprenticeship courses by improving careers education and widening pathways to universities.

Niamh O Regan, SMF researcher, said: ‘For education to be an effective tool to achieve social mobility, we must give equal weight to the different kinds of qualifications that help students advance their learning and careers.

‘At the moment, politicians acknowledge that education can promote social mobility, but continue to favour only one type of qualification and pathway. This insistence only maintains inequality, whilst educational barriers holding back disadvantaged youth remain standing.

‘There needs to be a shift in approach to education – where all types of qualifications and post-18 routes are given equal value, whilst HE institutions also widen access by accepting all these types of qualifications. This approach has the potential to make education fairer and help everybody achieve their potential.’