Taller pupils are not only more likely to be picked for school netball or basketball teams - their height may also lead to better exam results, new evidence suggests

According to research that may grate with those of a smaller stature, taller people can typically achieve higher grades and stay in education for longer.

However, this is only true for students attending large schools, according to the paper by Professor Devon Gorry of Utah State University.

The paper explains that being tall could “attract attention from teachers and peers” in large schools where it may otherwise be difficult to stand out or make close friends, due to the number of pupils.

Height might also help pupils to get on to school sports teams; in larger schools, where competition is more fierce, smaller students may be less likely to make the cut, the study suggests.

This gives students more opportunities to “develop human capital” as well as incentives to stay at school for longer, according to the findings.

Short students ‘may suffer’

Each extra foot in height was associated with staying in school for half a year longer, on average, as well as higher grades.

The pattern was a much stronger for boys than for girls.

The study accounted for factors such as gender, race, age, parental education and health. It was based on findings from nearly 7,000 high schools in “non-urban” areas of the US, and more than 4,000 students. The schools ranged in size from 47 to 2,590 pupils.

The report concluded: “As schools continue to grow, it is important to provide equal access to educational opportunities to all individuals or the short students may be the ones that suffer.”

However, regardless of the study’s findings, history is full of celebrated figures who have overcome their height disadvantage. For instance, Albert Einstein was a hardly vertiginous 5ft 7in, and Mozart is thought to have measured up at just 5ft 2in - not huge, even by 18th-century standards.

The musician Prince was famously petite, at 5ft 3in, while philosopher Immanuel Kant was only 5ft tall.

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