By Mark Smulian | 23 July 2013
Young people from the most disadvantaged backgrounds are now more likely than ever to apply to university, despite the controversy two years ago over tuition fees.
A report by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service has found that demand for higher education increasing for all categories after the lull that followed the increase in maximum fees in 2012 to £9,000.
It said applications by 18-year-olds from disadvantaged groups in England reached record highs for the 2013 academic year, whether defined by area or individual income.
‘These increases continue a pattern of substantial increases - over 70% proportionally - over the past 10 cycles [over academic years] that is reducing the differences in application rates between advantaged and disadvantaged groups,’ it said.
In 2004, demand from 18-year-olds in advantaged areas was 4.3 times greater than in disadvantaged areas. This difference has now fallen to 2.7.
However, there were wide variations by ethnicity among state school applicants. More than half of Chinese ethnic students applied, but fewer than 30% of white students. The greatest increase was among black students, from 20% in 2006 to 34% now.
Publishing the analysis, Ucas chief executive Mary Curnock Cook said: ‘Young application rates for higher education are rising again after falls in 2012 and the gap between rich and poor is closing as disadvantaged groups are applying at record levels.
‘Our new analysis of demand by ethnic group shows that white pupils at English schools now have the lowest application rate of any ethnic group. There has been significant growth in demand from black pupils.’
Professor Les Ebdon, the director of fair access to higher education, said: ‘We are seeing further very encouraging evidence that the rise in applications continues a long-term increase in participation from people from disadvantaged backgrounds.
‘The figures demonstrate clearly that universities’ significant efforts to widen participation to higher education are making a real and lasting difference to thousands of lives. People who might otherwise have never have thought of university are now applying, thanks to a range of sustained outreach work which informs and inspires.’
Ucas said demand from 18-year-olds in England increased by one percentage point to 35% in 2013, which it said was ‘typical of the trend between 2006 and 2011 and takes the application rate back to the 2011 level, after its decrease in 2012’. Application rates in Northern Ireland were 48%, Scotland 32% and Wales 30%.
There were sharp differences in application rates between English regions, ranging from 42% of 18-year-olds in London to 31% in the north east, despite increases in northern areas, which Curnock Cook said were part of ‘eye-catching’ regional variations.
Demand increased across all institutions whether they charges full fees or offer some discount.
All showed the pattern of a dip in applications in 2012 followed by a revival, with applications up by 3%, 2 % and 1% for high, medium and low tariff institutions respectively.
There was a sharp rise in applications to those places that charge the full £9,000 fee. In 2012, 59% of English applications were to courses charged at that rate, but this has now risen to 73%.
