UCAS Applications down

UCAS Applications down

UK University applications are forecast to fall by 10% according to an article in the Guardian. There are a number of proposed reasons for this drop:

Ø      Fees of £9,000 per year are deterring potential students. Some applicants believe they will have to pay up front rather than repaying after earning at least £21,000.

Ø      There was a glut of applications last year in anticipation of the fee hike.

Ø      The number of UK 18 year-olds is falling; it will fall by 10% by the end of the decade.

Ø      Apprenticeships are being talked up.

Applications to Scottish Universities show that the number of Scottish students applying is down by 1.1%. They don’t have to pay. English applications (paying £9,000) are down by 5.6%.

The number of Scottish students hoping to study in Scotland is down by just 1.1%. Ministers and student leaders say the statistics are an endorsement of the Scottish government's stance on student funding.

English applications to Scottish universities are down by 5.6%, and applications from Northern Ireland are down by 15.1% on the previous year. Students from both face fees of up to £9,000 if they choose to study in Scotland.

Despite this expected drop, there will still be more applicants than places. Last year 140,000 young people were denied a University place and the government has cut the number of places available for this autumn by 15,000.

Professor David Green, vice-chancellor of the University of Worcester said “in the long term, we will have a workforce that is less skilled."