§ Mr. ChaytorTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what was the total number of applications from mature students to universities in England and Wales in each of the last three years. [75076]
432W
§ Mr. Mudie[holding answer 9 March 1999]: This information is given in the following table.
Applications from mature1 students to higher education courses2 in England and Wales Year of entry Number of applications3 1996 333,111 19974 334,767 19984 281,499 1 Aged 21 or over 2 Full-time and sandwich undergraduate courses 3 Each applicant can make up to six applications 4 Including applications to Art and Design courses which were included in the UCAS scheme for the first time in 1997. The figures cover applications for full-time and sandwich students only, and exclude applications to part-time courses, which account for more than half of all mature undergraduate students. Early figures show that home and EU part-time numbers in England in 1998–99 are up by around 1 per cent.
The number of applications is not a reliable guide to the number of students who actually accept places; figures for the UK show that the number of mature students accepted for entry to full-time courses in 1998 exceeded the number accepted in 1996.
The fall in mature applications between 1997 and 1998 is attributable, at least in part, to demographic factors, the declining pool of potential mature applicants and the relative strength of the labour market. In addition, the surge in students admissions in 1997 meant that fewer prospective students were expected to apply in 1998.
Complete figures for applications for 1999 entry are not yet available.