The number of UK born students applying to start university next year has fallen by 15 per cent, the university admissions service has revealed. The latest statistics, published by Ucas, show 133,357 applicants have applied from within the UK, compared with 157,116 this time last year.
Many universities and trade unions say the drop in applicants is due to the rise in tuition fees, which will treble to a maximum of £9,000 per year in 2012, The Guardian reports.
“We believe putting financial barriers in front of young people who have been told their entire lives to aim for university is nothing more than a policy of penalising ambition,” Sally Hunt, General Secretary of the University and College Union (UCU) stated.
The number of mature students applying to university has also decreased, with applications from adults age 25-39 falling by 20 per cent and those over 40 by 25 per cent.
Les Ebdon, the Chair of Million+, which represents some of the new universities, commented on the issue: “Many mature students study later because they realise that they have missed out on the life-changing employment and learning opportunities that studying for a degree offers. No one should lose the chance to be what they might have been. Ministers need to up their game, and should launch a campaign in the New Year to ensure that older students understand the new loan system and the opportunities available.”
The proportions of applicants from Northern Ireland and Scotland have also decreased by 15.2 per cent and 12.7 per cent respectively; those from England and Wales have fallen by 10.2 per cent and 10.3 per cent.
Individual universities have not revealed how their applications compare with last year, although City University, in London, has said their numbers are down by 41.4 per cent on last year.
Both Ucas and the Russell Group have defended the fall in applicants for 2012.Wendy Piatt, Director General of the Russell Group said it is unfair to compare the number of applicants for next autumn’s courses with those for this year’s because the previous figures may have been artificially inflated by students applying before the near-trebling of fees came into effect.
Mary Curnock Cook, the Chief Executive of Ucas, said she expected “some depression of demand” because of a decline in the young population. She said it is “much too early to predict any effects from changes in tuition fees”.
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by Victoria Bamber
