More University Applicants Accepted Than Ever Before, Says Ucas

Fri, 22 Jan 2010

The number of students who were accepted onto courses at UK universities last year reached an all-time high, according to new figures from admissions body Ucas .

A total of 481,854 applicants gained university places in 2009, a 5.5 per cent increase on the 25,227 who were accepted the previous year.

Nearly 640,000 university applications were made in total last year, 8.7 per cent higher than in 2008. The higher demand meant that the rate of acceptance in 2009 fell by 3 per cent to 75 per cent.

The Ucas figures also revealed a significant increase in the number of over-25 applicants. Some 89,000 applications were made by adults aged 25 and over last year, an increase of 15.3 per cent on the 2008 figure.

Just under 56,000 over-25s were awarded a place at university, compared to 51,400 the previous year, while there was also a large rise in the acceptance rate for overseas students, up from 51,603 in 2008 to 56,791 in 2009.

Ucas chief executive, Mary Curnock Cook said: "2009 saw an unprecedented demand for places at university or college, but significantly more students have been accepted into higher education than ever before."

The figures have put extra pressure on the government to provide necessary funding for additional university places this autumn to prevent thousands of prospective students from missing out.
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