Call for long-term funding for universities amid record applications

THE GOVERNMENT has been urged to invest in the higher education sector, amid concerns over a repeat of last summer when there was a huge number of qualified applicants to universities.

The Yorkshire Universities group’s call comes as the Office for Students (OfS) this week urged higher education institutions to ensure students starting in the autumn are not left disappointed because “over-recruitment” has reduced the quality of their course.

The Government’s has confirmed teachers in England will decide pupils’ A-level grades this summer after exams were cancelled for the second year in a row. Dr Peter O’Brien, the director of Yorkshire Universities, which represents 12 institutions in the region, stressed the need for long-term investment into the sector to meet future demand.

He said: “To support greater social inclusion and, given that skills are a key part of the ‘levelling up’ agenda, it is vital that the Government supports universities and invests in the sector to help students attain the skills we know are needed to help the region recover and prosper in the long-term.”

Ucas data shows that a record 42.6 per cent of all 18-year-olds had applied to university by the main deadline in January, up from 39.5 per cent last year. Universities fear a repeat of last summer when record numbers of top A-level grades were awarded, which will make it hard for admissions officers to deal with a wave of qualified applicants.

Almost 200,000 students study in Yorkshire, and the start of the last academic year saw a two per cent rise of undergraduates starting at universities in the region compared with the previous year, according to Ucas.

A Universities UK spokeswoman said admissions teams are “pulling out all the stops” to be fair and flexible in their decisionmaking.