Access is the friend of intellect but the enemy of income

Michael Beloff, President of Trinity College

"The children of old members do get turned down, but someone who has been a very close friend of the college for a very long period of time should perhaps have received a 'heads-up' rather than the usual letter from the tutor for admissions.

"Universities have perhaps not yet realised that they can only really raise money from the old members. That means they have to feel they belong and they are being fairly treated.

"Probably that means that, given two equal candidates, they will perhaps have a slight bias towards the family whose family has been generous," he said.

But, after Chancellor Gordon Brown's attack on the university's admissions procedure two years ago following the rejection of state school pupil Laura Spence, Oxford dons are unsurprisingly nervous about laying themselves open to accusations of operating an "old boys' network".

Thorough selection

A spokesman for Oxford University said the decision as whether to admit an individual candidate rested with the tutors at the colleges in question.

We hope that Mr Keevil will feel able to continue his work with Oxford

Oxford University spokesman

"Oxford's selection procedure is one of the most comprehensive in the country and great care is take to evaluate each candidate as an individual in light of a range of evidence to assess their potential," said the spokesman.

"Competition is intense and Oxford receives many more well-qualified applicants than it has places available.

"We are very grateful to donors and volunteers such as Mr Keevil for the invaluable support that they give to the University and hope that Mr Keevil will feel able to continue his work with Oxford," he added.

What money can't buy

Writing in the Times on Thursday, the President of Trinity College Michael Beloff said money could not buy a place at Oxford.

The Laura Spence legacy appears to live on

"The Shavian dilemma of choosing between offering a place to a suitably qualified candidate, whose father has promised in return a gift which would be of benefit to generations of students, at the expense of a worthier candidate, who would bring no such dowry in tow is not open to an Oxford Head of House," wrote Mr Beloff.

The American system - where private universities favoured former students' offspring in the admission process and used alumnus gifts to help students from disadvantaged backgrounds - was the product of a different culture, he went on.

"Access is the friend of intellect but the enemy of income.

"A college can sometimes pay a high price for its pursuit of the path of virtue," he concluded.