'I felt cheated by a transparent ploy'

Isabela Vaca thought she was going to an interview crucial to securing her university place.

But when she got to the campus she had to wait almost four hours for a simple group interview that lasted less than five minutes.

In the meantime, the 18-year-old from Chessington, Surrey, was dragged around the south of England university by official guides and bombarded with a thinly disguised hard sell to persuade her to return for good in the autumn.

The widespread tactic is further evidence of how commercial pressures on universities affect their admissions procedures.

"It was a pretty transparent ploy," said the Tolworth Girls' School pupil, who wants to read a combined degree of business and Hispanic studies.

"I got there for noon but was then given an interview time for 3.30pm. I said: 'What should I do until then?' And they said they had arranged this tour for us.

"It was a whole hour walking around the university, the gym, the union and then a lot of things I wasn't really interested in. I didn't feel I had a choice to opt out.

"The interview only lasted about five minutes and it was a group interview.

"But they had already sent me an informal letter saying I had a conditional offer so there was no point to that."

Isabela says she understands the pressures some universities have to fill their places, but the advertising exercise had a negative impact on her.

"I was annoyed. I did feel slightly cheated and was actually put off by it."