Universities see rise in students from rest of UK

Thousands head north of Border despite £9,000 fees

SCOTTISH universities have seen a rise in the number of fee-paying students from the rest of the UK in the wake of A-level results day.

As hundreds of thousands of teenagers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland received their results new figures showed 4,990 have already secured a place at a Scottish university compared with 4,830 the previous year – an increase of more than three per cent.

The rise is important because students from the rest of the UK (rUK) now pay fees of up to £9,000 a year and contribute some £140 million annually to the sector.

Scottish universities had feared the loss of millions of pounds following changes in Westminster higher education policy which removed a cap on the number of students English universities could admit.

However, the latest figures from Ucas, the universities and colleges admissions service, appear to show Scotland’s most prestigious universities are still an attractive option for rUK students.

And with Scottish universities still recruiting rUK students through the clearing system – which matches prospective students with free places – numbers are likely to rise even further.

A spokesman for Universities Scotland, which represents univer- sity principals, said: “Scotland’s universities are delighted to welcome students from across the UK to study in Scotland and consider the cross border flows of students, in both directions, to be very positive.

“Scottish universities continue to make an attractive proposition to students from the rest of the UK offering some of the most generous bursaries and producing the most employable graduates in the UK.

“It is welcome to see the number of rUK students choosing to study in Scotland hold up following the removal of the cap on places in England, as of A level results day. It will be interesting to see what picture develops as clearing progresses over the coming days and weeks.”

Vonnie Sandlan, president of student body NUS Scotland, also welcomed the increasing number of rUK students, but issued a warning over fair access.

She said: “This increase is welcome, but it doesn’t necessarily mean we’re protecting or improv- ing access for the poorest students from England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

“We know from previous reports that some universities continue to increase their rUK fees, or reduce the financial support available, and we wouldn’t want to see these students being recruited simply because of the £9,000 price tag attached to them.”

The Ucas figures also confirmed that record numbers of Scots have been accepted into university.

“So far, 28,130 Scots-domiciled students have secured a place – an increase of 790 or three per cent compared to the same time last year.

Angela Constance, the Education Secretary, said: “Scottish results saw a record number of Scots students accepted to university compared to the same point last year and I am absolutely delighted to see the trend has continued into this week.”

The need to alter the fee level paid by rUK students in Scotland was prompted by UK Government changes to university funding.

Because institutions were allowed to charge up to £9,000 a year in the rest of the UK, the SNP Government decided to let Scots institutions charge similar fees.

Their introduction here was also seen as helping to close the funding gap between Scotland and the rest of the UK brought about by the new tuition fees regime south of the Border which has seen sector income rise.

‘‘ Scottish universities continue to make an attractive proposition because they offer very generous bursaries

PIPER Rikki Evans set a Guinness World Record after playing his bagpipes for 24 hours.

The 28-year-old from Aberdeen celebrated his achievement with a sip of champagne.

He played from 11am on Wednesday until 1pm yesterday. Rules allowed Rikki a 30-second pause every two minutes.

He undertook the challenge to mark the 10th anniversary of the death of piper Gordon Duncan and in support of CLAN Cancer Support, Cash For Kids, The Gordon Duncan Memorial Trust, Portlethen and District Pipe Band and The National Piping Centre.