§ 6. Mr. Monroasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many applicants possessing the appropriate qualifications are expected to seek entry to British universities in the years 1967–68, 1968–69, and 1969–70; how many places will be available in each year; and what are the comparable figures for Scottish universities.
§ Mr. CroslandSome 92,000 candidates applied for admission to British universities in 1966–67 through the Universities Central Council on Admissions. This figure includes overseas candidates and candidates without the minimum academic qualifications for the university courses to which they sought admission,126W but excludes Scottish candidates for certain Scottish universities and candidates for London Medical Schools, who apply direct.
If the number of candidates were to rise strictly in proportion to the number of students expected to leave school or further education institutions with two or more G.C.E. passes at advanced level or the equivalent Scottish qualification, the corresponding numbers for future years would be:
Academic year Number of candidates 1967–68 … … 93,300 1968–69 … … 95,200 1969–70 … … 98,200 These figures may be regarded as minima, since they exclude increases in the application rate and the effects of extending the scope of application through the U.C.C.A.On the assumptions made by the Robbins Committee the numbers of places in British universities for new entrants (including students from overseas) would be:
Academic year New entrants 1967–68 … … 51,600 1968–69 … … 51,400 1969–70 … … 51,900 I expect that at least these numbers of places will be available.I regret that separate figures for candidates for Scottish universities are not available. The Robbins Committee estimates for places in Scottish universities for new entrants from the United Kingdom are:
Academic year Number of new entrants from U.K. 1967–68 … … 7,390 1968–69 … … 7,510 1969–70 … … 7,810