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Universities should stop relying on A-level grades and rethink exactly what it is they want from prospective students, John Dunford, general secretary of the Secondary Heads Association, told the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service conference in Aberystwyth this week.

The reform of post-16 education offers "a once-in-a-generation opportunity for higher education to reconsider the basis of its entry criteria", Dr Dunford said in his keynote address. He also said admissions tutors should make more use of aptitude tests used in the United States.