Rise In University Drop Out Rate Reported

Fri, 05 Jun 2009

University drop-out rates have reached their highest level for three years, according to annual figures from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (Hesa).

The data shows that the proportion of undergraduates in the UK who failed to complete their first year at university increased by 0.3 per cent to 7.4 per cent in 2006-07, the year the government raised top-up fees to £3,000.

In England, 7.1 per cent failed to complete their first year, compared with 6.7 per cent prior to the student fees increase.

According to the figures, Oxford and Cambridge had the lowest drop-out rates in 2007-08, with less than one in a hundred students quitting in their first year.

In contrast, between 15 per cent and 19 per cent of students at the universities of Greenwich, Sunderland, Bolton and London Metropolitan failed to complete their first year, while one in five studying at the University of Ulster dropped out.

The official figures also reveal that the percentage of school-leavers from disadvantaged backgrounds going on to university is falling, despite the government spending millions to try to improve their participation rates.

Commenting on the findings, NUS President Wes Streeting said: "These figures show that universities are getting even worse at widening participation from students from poorer backgrounds, despite promising to work harder in this area in return for the ability to charge top-up fees ."

"The idea that fees could be raised to £5,000 a year without any impact on those from lower socio-economic backgrounds is laughable, particularly given the current harsh economic climate."

He added: "Universities are not working hard enough to help those who are struggling to cope with the costs and demands of higher education ."

"The current system of financial support, which leaves the administration of bursaries in the hands of individual institutions, is not working. We need a national scheme, so that financial support is based on how much a student needs it, not where they happen to be studying."
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