Admissions

Providing a pathway from little-known community colleges to highly acclaimed universities, America's credit transfer system is internationally admired for driving social mobility and offering a vital ‘second chance’ for late bloomers. But opaque and complex university rules are undermining one of US higher education’s great achievements, argue Lauren Schudde and Huriya Jabbar

A merit-based admissions lottery and strict caps on how many private school pupils go to Russell Group universities are necessary for a more egalitarian society, argue Aaron Reeves and Sam Friedman

Scientists argue disciplines need their own ways of thinking about student belonging to reach diversity goals

Academics question why some universities should be pushed to the wall while others swell their intake

Record number of students win places having applied after main sector deadlines

Rise in students going directly into clearing helps keep overall admissions numbers steady

Covid-era expansion showed highly selective universities that they could manage growth, says admissions head

Number of places confirmed by high-tariff institutions as A-level results announced spikes

A-level results day celebrations belie a vicious spiral of demand for degrees that damages students and society, says Paul Wiltshire 

More sixth-formers choosing to study only STEM or social science subjects, squeezing university arts and humanities departments even harder

Campaign aims to address stalling university enrolments despite record interest in subject at A level

Surge in students using ‘decline my place’ function ahead of A-level results day flagged by chief executive Jo Saxton

More Scottish students given places at university or college, with small uptick in international undergraduates

Future financial health of UK institutions reliant on increasing student numbers after Labour rebuffs funding requests

The party behind the UK’s 50 per cent target is back in power but, while it still pledges commitment to equality of opportunity, it’s not clear what role – if any – universities will play in achieving this mission

Applications now down 1.6 per cent year-on-year, with bigger drop among international applicants

Survey finds widening gap between hopes and expectations of students from richest and poorest backgrounds

Rising number of applicants from abroad secure visas but don’t show up at campuses

The sea change in ministers’ educational backgrounds should prompt more action to get poorer students into selective universities, says Jon Datta

Ease of entry encourages access, and most universities have enough places to guarantee entry without requiring personal statements, says Tim Leunig

Cost of living blamed as ‘placeholder’ applicants fail to enrol after results day

Universities haemorrhage money as students face months-long waits

Students from disadvantaged backgrounds will be treated little differently from their privileged cousins, critics say

Education ministry steps in after competitive university entrance exam cancelled

Anonymisation or even quotas could level the playing field, but fragmentation of college processes threatens a reversal in decades of gains, says Alan Baker

As Australia mulls ‘hard’ caps on domestic as well as international students, expert warns of unintended consequences

Research suggests women particularly benefit from schemes that guarantee admission to highest-achieving school leavers

Figures also showed record 50.1 per cent of postgraduate students for the 2023 admissions cycle were from outside the European Union

First drop in proportion of admissions coming from maintained schools since 2014

Population of students who have studied at college but not gained a degree grew by 2.9 per cent to 36.8 million, report finds

The colleges need to remember their medieval origins and act with greater shared purpose, says Simon Ravenscroft

Late responses to PhD applicant enquiries and lack of signposting might contribute to poor ethnic minority representation at doctoral level, researchers say

Higher education growth shifts east, but there are markedly different trends across Asia

Admissions service announces series of initiatives to encourage students from low-income families to apply for higher education

‘Differential offer rates are part of the endemic inequalities we see in higher education’, says expert

Government-mandated cuts to undergraduate admissions will ‘escalate competition’ for places, sector leaders warn

After forcing delays in 2024-25 admissions cycle, administration promises simplified aid process will help more students, but current educational and political costs loom as substantial

While diversity advocates bemoaned 2023 ruling restricting affirmative action, broad tally affirms that nation’s institutions generally didn’t use that power

Giving a major push to a growing trend, Ivy League institution concludes that using the SAT and ACT produces a net gain in equity

In a nation that struggles to get minority students into medicine, Ontario university eyes progress in broader admissions process

Durham again found to have lowest proportion of students from its own region, but highlights work to boost north east's low HE participation rate

Rights group criticises government’s move to use region’s lower university admissions standards to its advantage

Singapore Management University provost Timothy Clark says reforms will push students away from using generative AI in admissions statements

Prodded by conservative activists and politicians, several public universities are interpreting Supreme Court admissions ruling to include a ban on minority-focused aid

With little movement at federal level, local lawmakers test long-shot strategies to stop universities giving children of alumni a foot in the door

Education inspectorate says quotas are unlawful after TU Delft attempts to address gender imbalance in aerospace engineering

If, as it must, engineering is to contribute to restoring the planet, it needs to attract holistic-thinking carers, says Tim Ibell 

Scientific method can inform an inclusiveness agenda that ‘works’, says former Blair adviser

The document gestures to some key barriers, but Indigenous knowledge is valuable in itself, not just for improving outcomes, says Ian Anderson

Government considers whether number of entrants to universities in research-intensive grouping should still be a measure of school performance

Yale and Dartmouth moves to mandate SAT and ACT submissions have long-time opposition alliance getting testy about possible reversals across academia

To make maths programmes viable, we must make them more attractive to a wider pool of applicants, says Jens Marklof

English regulator considers changes to nationwide outreach programme after report finds impact is patchy

Key recommendation in Australian sector review report is substantially different from its historical namesake

Development of ‘cold spots’ without arts and humanities programmes prompts calls for more strategic approach to university provision

Locals-made-good laud the potential of more accessible – and visible – universities

Opportunities that enhance employability and the student experience will boost both enrolments and donations, says Robert Phillips

Ucas figures also show application gap between London and UK region with lowest rate has reached record level

Ucas data reveals drop in application rate among UK school-leavers and significant declines in international interest from key sectors, with least selective institutions bearing brunt

Just over a third of providers made unconditional offers in 2023, most frequently to students applying for design, and creative and performing arts