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University Applications Up Again

If you think austerity, tuition fees and rising costs are keeping student applications down, think again. According to UCAS, applications for degree courses from teenagers increased to record levels this year. The same pattern was repeated for the Clearing process – where undecided A-level students or those with less-certain predicted grades await results before applying for the last few available courses.

 

18-Year-Olds Still Seek Education

It’s great news for the country and for the government. UCAS announced at the end of August that 1/3 of all 18-year-olds in the UK applied for degree courses for this academic year. This isn’t just an increase, but reason to celebrate because it is a record high.

Even in financially difficult times with the acquisition of vast debts, young people still realise the importance of education. However, it is not all good news. Some universities saw application levels lower than expected but where able to fill these places with international students – both EU and non-EU citizens.

 

Record Clearing Applications

A-level results were published, on time, in the middle of August for England and Wales, ditto for Northern Ireland. Immediately, UCAS came out to state that this was also a record year for Clearing applications and successfully connecting students with desired courses. Over 17,000 students (of 210,000) acquired places during Clearing. This was a 15% rise.

Clearing is more popular than ever though. Students who are unsure about their grades, and those waiting to see what they get before applying, are seeing the biggest increase. It seems students are hedging their bets and waiting longer to decide where to go rather than getting in there early to ensure they get the place they want. This could be caution or it could be a lack of confidence in their predicted grades and not setting one’s heart on certain institutions.

All round, this is good news for higher education establishments.

 

But Why?

The main credit must go to universities themselves. Over the last few years with competition increasing, innovation has been top of the agenda. Institutions are using new marketing techniques to young people while some have offered retail shopping style sweeteners and limited time offers to ensure students choose them rather than another university.

Plus, many have focused strongly on disadvantaged students recently in line with criticisms from various pressure groups that not enough was being done. Students from disadvantaged backgrounds saw one of the biggest increases. In England alone, 18% of applicants came from this demographic.

 

Re-Applications May Become the Norm

One particularly successful pilot scheme from University of Cambridge which permitted students from disadvantaged backgrounds rejected in the earlier main stage of applications, to reapply. They heralded this scheme as a success after 67 successful re-applications. They intend to carry on the scheme; other universities are monitoring with interest.