Rise in Tuition Fees Leads to 40% Drop in University Admissions

Published on January 22, 2013 by admin · No Comments

The hike in tuition fees has caused ‘wild and dangerous swings’ in university admissions, with some institutions taking on 43 per cent fewer students that the previous year.

The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (Ucas) revealed that 51,000 fewer students started degree courses last autumn – a fall of 12 per cent – after fees nearly trebled to £9,000 a year.

Ten of the 24 leading universities from the Russell Group, including Leeds, Imperial College London and Warwick, registered drops.

Hardest hit: London Metropolitan University had 43 per cent fewer students starting degree courses last autumn compared to the previous year

London Metropolitan University, which last year had its licence to sponsor international students revoked, suffered the biggest fall at 43 per cent.

Enrolment also dropped 13 per cent at the University of Southampton, 10% at the University of Liverpool and 9% at the University of Sheffield.

There was also a 7 per cent decline at the University of Birmingham, Birmingham University and 6 per cent drops at the University of Leeds, Imperial and the University of London.

But some institutions managed to buck the trend, including University College London, where enrolment rose 22 per cent, and the University of Cardiff, which posted an increase of 13 per cent.

King’s College London boasted a rise of 12 per, while admissions were up 11 per cent at the University of Edinburgh.