Uni applications down, but Warwick still on top form

University applications for 2012 are down significantly, however, the University of Warwick has not seen the significant decrease experienced by other universities in the country.

According to the latest figures released by UCAS, university applications for 2012 currently stand at 9 per cent below last year’s level. In contrast, Warwick has only experienced a 4 per cent decline in applications – far less than many other leading universities. Figures at Warwick also show that the number of applications from overseas are actually up 1.2 per cent.

At this stage in 2011, 76,612 students in total had applied for higher education courses compared to 69,724 for 2012. It is thought that the fall is the highest ever experienced – bar during WWI and II – with some universities experiencing significant declines: City University London is down 41.4 per cent compared to last year’s applications.

When overseas applications are eliminated, applications from the UK have dropped 12 per cent, instilling a fear that the government will be forced to rely ever more heavily on overseas students who pay the full cost of their courses –sometimes as much £26,000 per annum.

As the first figures published since the fee increase, the impact of the rise is immediately apparent. Nicola Dandridge, chief executive of Universities UK, said: “It’s too early to read into these figures.” Others would disagree, seeing the rise in fees as liable for the decline in applicants.

First-year undergraduate Tom Duncan said: “I feel very lucky to have just missed out on the rise in fees – I’m sure it will make lots of people reconsider a university education.” Undergraduate Lucy Blotly agrees: “I feel sorry for the students who would have loved to take a gap year but simply can’t afford to now.”

Peter Slowe of Projects Abroad, which places around 8,000 volunteers a year, said they had noticed a 10 per cent drop in applications last year as students ditched gap years in order to beat the fee increase. They predict that the popularity of the gap year will continue to fade due to the increased debt students now face.

“I think it’s a crying shame”, he said. “This is the only time that students can take off with their parents approving, and their teachers approving. It is something of intrinsic value and it is something that has been completely screwed up by this policy of tuition fees.” Sally Hunt, General Secretary of the University and Colleges Union (UCU) added: “The government’s fee policy has been a disaster from the start… it is clearly having a serious impact on the choices young people make.”

Universities Minister David Willetts countered this by saying that students are simply ill-informed:

“It is important that no one is put off applying to university because they do not have information about how the new student finance system works.” Be that as it may, many would question what exactly is being done to educate students about policy changes and the direct implications that they will have on their studies. Tragically, many students may wrongly assume that for them, the door to higher education has been shut.

Many would argue that more effort needs to made to ensure that applicants are aware of the changes to the system, allowing them to be fully informed about finances before they apply, preventing eligible students from missing out, whilst concerns have been raised that continued confusion will inevitably lead to an even greater decline in applications come 2013.