Following a record-breaking processing year for applications, the provisional final figures for the number of students being accepted into university or college has now been released by UCAS; 477,277 applicants have now had a place confirmed at a university or college this year, an increase of 25,406 (5.6%) on the same point last year.
Virginia Isaac, Acting Chief Executive at UCAS said: "This year has been unprecedented in many respects. Significantly increased applications and far more students being accepted at a university or college than ever before. In particular we have seen a notable increase - of 10.1% - in acceptances of students aged 25 and over."
Analysis shows that acceptances are being made with a long term view of the marketplace, countering the challenges certain industries are facing in the current economic climate. Increases in acceptances for degree subjects such as journalism (+15.7%), nursing (+20.0%) and business related courses are contrasting against those that are falling. Those linked with linguistics skills are particularly noticeable in their decline.
Many of the science, technology, engineering and maths related subjects, where the Government has made recent investment, have seen an increase in acceptances.
Virginia said "The electronic systems supporting Confirmation and Clearing worked particularly smoothly this year, placing students more quickly than in previous years. UCAS is now well placed to develop the service should external circumstances demand it."
"This year we saw a considerable increase in the number of students accepted through Clearing. This confounded predictions that additional places would be limited."
A new feature this year was Adjustment. Each year some applicants pass their exams with better results than expected, exceeding the conditions of their firm choice. The five-day window allowed over 380 students to find an alternative place.
Over 40% of applicants had the opportunity to use the scheme. Of a total of 3,600 registrations, 384 were placed in their Adjustment choice, 2,355 reconfirmed with their original choice and 444 were placed in another choice (main scheme, Extra or Clearing). 417 of those who registered were not placed.
Virginia continues: "The new Adjustment process operated smoothly. While only a small number of applicants utilised the service, it gave students, particularly those with more vocational qualifications, the chance to review their options within a secure framework"
Table 1: Applicant statistics - 55 days after the release of A level results
| 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | |
| Applicants accepted (1) | |||
| - having unconditional or confirmed conditional offers | 429,705 | 408,726 | 373,494 |
| - having found a place in Clearing | 47,188 | 43,145 | 38,477 |
| - having been placed using Adjustment | 384 | 0 | 0 |
| - Total number of accepted applicants | 477,277 | 451,871 | 411,971 |
| Applicants with a non-Clearing outcome pending | |||
| - decision from institution or applicant reply | 1,987 | 2,804 | 2,023 |
| Applicants currently eligible for Clearing | |||
| - no offers, conditions not met, applied very late | 139,520 | 114,009 | 103,324 |
| Applicants withdrawn from scheme (2) | 14,808 | 13,973 | 14,580 |
| Total number of applicants | 633,592 | 582,657 | 531,898 |
| Days from publication of GCE results: | 55 | 55 | 55 |
| Comparison date (3) | 14/10/09 | 08/10/08 | 10/10/07 |
| Number of institutions within UCAS membership receiving applications | 304 | 306 | 322 |
Table 1 notes
Table 2: Acceptances from applicants by age group and gender
| Year | Male | Female | Total | |
| 20 years and under | 2009 | 167,169 | 197,721 | 364,890 |
| 2008 | 158,155 | 190,896 | 349,051 | |
| % change | 5.7% | 3.6% | 4.5% | |
| 21 to 24 years | 2009 | 28,235 | 29,682 | 57,917 |
| 2008 | 26,161 | 27,178 | 53,339 | |
| % change | 7.9% | 9.2% | 8.6% | |
| 25 years and over | 2009 | 20,310 | 34,160 | 54,470 |
| 2008 | 18,261 | 31,220 | 49,481 | |
| % change | 11.2% | 9.4% | 10.1% | |
| Total | 2009 | 215,714 | 261,563 | 477,277 |
| 2008 | 202,577 | 249,294 | 451,871 | |
| % change | 6.5% | 4.9% | 5.6% | |
Table 3: Acceptances by age and UK country
| Country of residence | ||||||
| England | Wales | Scotland | Northern Ireland | Total | ||
| 20 years and under | 2009 | 277,045 | 15,369 | 21,887 | 11,643 | 325,944 |
| 2008 | 266,540 | 14,257 | 20,929 | 11,468 | 313,194 | |
| % change | 3.9% | 7.8% | 4.6% | 1.5% | 4.1% | |
| 21 to 24 years | 2009 | 38,702 | 2,257 | 3,545 | 1,275 | 45,779 |
| 2008 | 35,439 | 1,916 | 3,353 | 1,216 | 41,924 | |
| % change | 9.2% | 17.8% | 5.7% | 4.9% | 9.2% | |
| 25 years and over | 2009 | 43,543 | 2,604 | 3,547 | 709 | 50,403 |
| 2008 | 39,100 | 2,102 | 3,229 | 765 | 45,196 | |
| % change | 11.4% | 23.9% | 9.8% | -7.3% | 11.5% | |
| Total | 2009 | 359,290 | 20,230 | 28,979 | 13,627 | 422,126 |
| 2008 | 341,079 | 18,275 | 27,511 | 13,449 | 400,314 | |
| % change | 5.3% | 10.7% | 5.3% | 1.3% | 5.4% | |
Table 4: Acceptances by area of domicile and country of accepting institution
| Area of Permanent Residence | Country of institution | Total | ||||
| England | Wales | Scotland | Northern Ireland | |||
| England | 2009 | 344,508 | 9,724 | 4,783 | 275 | 359,290 |
| 2008 | 327,971 | 8,423 | 4,411 | 274 | 341,079 | |
| % change | 5.0% | 15.4% | 8.4% | 0.4% | 5.3% | |
| Wales | 2009 | 5,692 | 14,393 | 132 | 13 | 20,230 |
| 2008 | 5,492 | 12,664 | 109 | 10 | 18,275 | |
| % change | 3.6% | 13.7% | 21.1% | 30.0% | 10.7% | |
| Scotland | 2009 | 1,715 | 52 | 27,194 | 18 | 28,979 |
| 2008 | 1,768 | 67 | 25,654 | 22 | 27,511 | |
| % change | -3.0% | -22.4% | 6.0% | -18.2% | 5.3% | |
| Northern Ireland | 2009 | 3,126 | 117 | 1,079 | 9,305 | 13,627 |
| 2008 | 3,223 | 109 | 1,104 | 9,013 | 13,449 | |
| % change | -3.0% | 7.3% | -2.3% | 3.2% | 1.3% | |
| Rep. of Ireland | 2009 | 1,377 | 251 | 781 | 447 | 2,856 |
| 2008 | 1,285 | 200 | 727 | 411 | 2,623 | |
| % change | 7.2% | 25.5% | 7.4% | 8.8% | 8.9% | |
| Other EU | 2009 | 16,128 | 830 | 3,550 | 20 | 20,528 |
| 2008 | 14,864 | 620 | 3,044 | 29 | 18,557 | |
| % change | 8.5% | 33.9% | 16.6% | -31.0% | 10.6% | |
| Non EU | 2009 | 27,381 | 1,128 | 3,171 | 87 | 31,767 |
| 2008 | 25,773 | 1,035 | 3,502 | 67 | 30,377 | |
| % change | 6.2% | 9.0% | -9.5% | 29.9% | 4.6% | |
| Total | 2009 | 399,927 | 26,495 | 40,690 | 10,165 | 477,277 |
| 2008 | 380,376 | 23,118 | 38,551 | 9,826 | 451,871 | |
| % change | 5.1% | 14.6% | 5.5% | 3.5% | 5.6% | |
Table 5: Acceptances by overseas country (> 600 Acceptances only)
| Country | 2009 | 2008 | Percent change |
| China | 6,073 | 5,969 | 1.7% |
| France | 2,956 | 2,565 | 15.2% |
| Ireland | 2,856 | 2,623 | 8.9% |
| Cyprus | 2,612 | 2,329 | 12.2% |
| Hong Kong | 2,562 | 2,611 | -1.9% |
| Malaysia | 2,382 | 2,033 | 17.2% |
| Germany | 2,380 | 2,197 | 8.3% |
| India | 1,744 | 1,714 | 1.8% |
| Nigeria | 1,576 | 1,813 | -13.1% |
| Greece | 1,538 | 1,660 | -7.3% |
| Bulgaria | 1,264 | 821 | 54.0% |
| Poland | 1,196 | 1,500 | -20.3% |
| Singapore | 1,196 | 977 | 22.4% |
| United States of America | 1,168 | 1,190 | -1.8% |
| Pakistan | 1,068 | 1,365 | -21.8% |
| Norway | 955 | 779 | 22.6% |
| Canada | 906 | 789 | 14.8% |
| Romania | 896 | 622 | 44.1% |
| Lithuania | 891 | 689 | 29.3% |
| Italy | 871 | 695 | 25.3% |
| Spain | 841 | 714 | 17.8% |
| Sweden | 807 | 785 | 2.8% |
| Saudi Arabia | 753 | 526 | 43.2% |
| All overseas | 55,151 | 51,557 | 7.0% |
Table 6: Acceptances by subject (all subjects)
| Joint Academic Coding System (JACS 2) Subject Line | Degree 2009 | Percent change | Found. degree 2009 | Percent change | Other 2009 | Percent change |
| M1 - Law by Area | 17,346 | 1.7% | 32 | 24 | ||
| W2 - Design studies | 16,674 | 5.5% | 1,796 | 8.4% | 344 | |
| C8 - Psychology | 15,327 | 3.4% | 44 | 26 | ||
| G4 - Computer Science | 11,328 | 7.0% | 1,000 | 8.0% | 715 | -0.8% |
| N2 - Management studies | 10,708 | -4.1% | 382 | 886 | 0.2% | |
| N1 - Business studies | 10,597 | 3.4% | 668 | 34.4% | 555 | 23.3% |
| Q3 - English studies | 10,374 | 5.4% | 16 | 12 | ||
| NN - Combinations within Business & Admin Studies | 10,311 | 11.4% | 539 | 58.5% | 227 | |
| C6 - Sports Science | 9,274 | 3.9% | 1,085 | 19.2% | 424 | |
| Y Combs of social studies/bus/law with arts/humanities | 8,677 | 8.4% | 921 | 40.0% | 86 | |
| B7 - Nursing | 8,600 | 20.0% | 297 | 16,110 | 15.8% | |
| V1 - History by Period | 8,510 | 5.0% | 1 | 11 | ||
| A1 - Pre-clinical Medicine | 7,967 | -0.6% | ||||
| Y Combs of languages with arts/humanities | 7,800 | 4.8% | 16 | |||
| X1 - Training Teachers | 7,624 | 0.9% | 320 | 63 | ||
| L5 - Social Work | 7,590 | 6.2% | 1,192 | 25.5% | 1,709 | 2.6% |
| N8 - Hospitality, Leisure, Tourism and Transport | 7,323 | 8.4% | 1,313 | 19.5% | 626 | -2.6% |
| B9 - Others in Subjects allied to Medicine | 7,188 | 10.7% | 448 | 899 | 33.8% | |
| L1 - Economics | 7,058 | 2.8% | ||||
| G1 - Mathematics | 6,908 | 7.6% | ||||
| W6 - Cinematics and Photography | 6,448 | 11.0% | 1,050 | 27.7% | 202 | |
| N4 - Accounting | 6,382 | 3.1% | 96 | 40 | ||
| Y Combs of science/engineering with arts/humanities/languages | 6,379 | 9.4% | 1,450 | 31.2% | 152 | |
| W4 - Drama | 6,353 | 4.7% | 694 | 13.8% | 415 | |
| X3 - Academic studies in Education | 6,228 | 8.3% | 804 | -0.7% | 54 | |
| Y Combs of science/engineering with social studies/bus/law | 5,833 | -3.7% | 441 | 91 | ||
| H3 - Mechanical Engineering | 5,757 | 11.9% | 338 | 104 | ||
| Z Combs of 3 subjects, or other general courses | 5,229 | -0.2% | 3 | 43 | ||
| L2 - Politics | 5,195 | 9.4% | 42 | |||
| P3 - Media studies | 5,141 | 8.0% | 348 | 66 | ||
| L3 - Sociology | 4,760 | 4.0% | 42 | 102 | ||
| C1 - Biology | 4,664 | 2.0% | 13 | 21 | ||
| H6 - Electronic and Electrical Engineering | 4,654 | 3.7% | 71 | 226 | ||
| W1 - Fine Art | 4,635 | 2.8% | 227 | 68 | ||
| W3 - Music | 4,482 | 3.0% | 602 | -1.3% | 166 | |
| H2 - Civil Engineering | 4,432 | 3.2% | 86 | 145 | ||
| K1 - Architecture | 4,349 | 3.9% | 50 | 15 | ||
| B2 - Pharmacology,Toxicology and Pharmacy | 4,322 | 6.1% | 52 | 3 | ||
| Y Combs of arts/humanities | 3,921 | 7.9% | 190 | 25 | ||
| N5 - Marketing | 3,889 | 6.0% | 95 | 55 | ||
| F1 - Chemistry | 3,885 | -3.0% | 59 | 12 | ||
| Y Combs of phys/math science with social studies/bus/law | 3,749 | -2.9% | 136 | 7 | ||
| F3 - Physics | 3,559 | 7.0% | 14 | |||
| F8 - Physical Geographical Sciences | 3,518 | 7.3% | 18 | 15 | ||
| K2 - Building | 3,506 | -3.4% | 338 | 444 | ||
| B1 - Anatomy,Physiology and Pathology | 3,389 | 5.1% | 31 | |||
| Y Combs of soc studies/law with business | 3,332 | -4.9% | 32 | 2 | ||
| WW - Combinations within Creative Arts and Design | 3,282 | 10.5% | 554 | 9.7% | 64 | |
| H1 - General Engineering | 3,261 | 3.1% | 24 | 74 | ||
| G5 - Information Systems | 3,165 | 4.9% | 409 | 187 | ||
| Y Combs of med/bio/agric sciences | 3,076 | 13.8% | 283 | 16 | ||
| LL - Combinations within Social Studies | 2,745 | 2.3% | 130 | 57 | ||
| Y Combs of social studies/bus/law with languages | 2,725 | -5.2% | 2 | |||
| L7 - Human and Social Geography | 2,725 | -1.4% | ||||
| P5 - Journalism | 2,675 | 15.7% | 144 | 21 | ||
| M9 - Others in Law | 2,650 | 11.8% | 63 | 104 | ||
| Y Combs of phys/math science with arts/humanities/languages | 2,285 | 6.5% | 179 | 97 | ||
| C7 - Molecular Biology,Biophysics & Biochem | 2,239 | -5.0% | 10 | 25 | ||
| Y Combs of soc studies/law | 2,137 | -2.5% | 88 | 8 | ||
| GG - Combinations within Mathematical & Computer Sci | 2,110 | 13.7% | 135 | 2 | ||
| H4 - Aerospace Engineering | 2,016 | 20.7% | 216 | 8 | ||
| B8 - Medical Technology | 1,924 | 10.2% | 33 | |||
| F4 - Forensic and Archaeological Science | 1,862 | 12.2% | 124 | 57 | ||
| J9 - Others in Technology | 1,836 | 19.0% | 358 | 66 | ||
| H8 - Chemical,Process and Energy Engineering | 1,826 | 11.0% | 12 | |||
| RR - Combinations within European Langs,Lit and related | 1,815 | 3.2% | ||||
| V5 - Philosophy | 1,599 | 12.6% | ||||
| Y Combs of languages | 1,573 | -7.2% | ||||
| F6 - Geology | 1,524 | 8.7% | 5 | |||
| G6 - Software Engineering | 1,466 | 4.5% | 134 | 62 | ||
| Y Combs of sciences with engineering/technology | 1,428 | -4.5% | 89 | 74 | ||
| Y Combs of med/bio/agric sciences with phys/math sciences | 1,421 | 1.4% | 69 | 16 | ||
| VV - Combinations within Hist & Philosophical studies | 1,355 | 0.1% | 10 | 1 | ||
| C3 - Zoology | 1,354 | 10.5% | 67 | 1 | ||
| N3 - Finance | 1,323 | -7.9% | 1 | 7 | ||
| V3 - History by Topic | 1,318 | -1.2% | 11 | 7 | ||
| F7 - Science of Aquatic and Terrestrial Environments | 1,310 | -5.5% | 82 | 51 | ||
| A2 - Pre-clinical Dentistry | 1,217 | 0.6% | ||||
| B3 - Complementary Medicine | 1,200 | -9.9% | 276 | 23 | ||
| V6 - Theology and Religious studies | 1,193 | -7.7% | 28 | 14 | ||
| W5 - Dance | 1,179 | 13.1% | 113 | 67 | ||
| B4 - Nutrition | 1,154 | 3.6% | 5 | |||
| D3 - Animal Science | 1,113 | 17.5% | 763 | 9.5% | 145 | |
| C9 - Others in Biological Sciences | 1,083 | 25.5% | 54 | 8 | ||
| M2 - Law by Topic | 1,048 | -5.5% | 112 | 10 | ||
| PP - Combinations within Mass Comms & Documentation | 987 | -13.1% | 35 | 15 | ||
| K4 - Planning (Urban,Rural and Regional) | 951 | -11.1% | 19 | 49 | ||
| Q8 - Classical studies | 901 | 1.8% | ||||
| B6 - Aural and Oral Sciences | 891 | -2.0% | ||||
| D1 - Pre-clinical Veterinary Medicine | 886 | -6.6% | ||||
| L4 - Social Policy | 882 | 1.1% | 435 | 86 | ||
| B5 - Ophthalmics | 812 | 5.9% | 49 | |||
| R1 - French studies | 797 | 2.2% | ||||
| R9 - Others in European Langs,Lit and related | 795 | -13.0% | ||||
| D4 - Agriculture | 782 | 15.3% | 766 | 21.8% | 197 | |
| W8 - Imaginative Writing | 780 | 28.1% | 11 | 6 | ||
| P9 - Others in Mass Comms & Documentation | 776 | -8.6% | 12 | 1 | ||
| Y Combs of phys/math sciences | 752 | -2.5% | 32 | |||
| L6 - Anthropology | 692 | -1.0% | ||||
| N9 - Others in Business & Admin Studies | 678 | 22.8% | 4 | |||
| H7 - Production and Manufacturing Engineering | 661 | -10.4% | 3 | 7 | ||
| N6 - Human Resource Management | 654 | -10.7% | 7 | |||
| HH - Combinations within Engineering | 648 | 19.8% | 66 | 14 | ||
| QQ - Combinations within Linguistics,Classics & related | 633 | -0.2% | ||||
| FF - Combinations within Physical Sciences | 606 | 9.6% | ||||
| L9 - Others in Social Studies | 596 | -1.2% | 48 | 20 | ||
| Q1 - Linguistics | 542 | -18.0% | 9 | |||
| W9 - Others in Creative Arts and Design | 530 | 20.5% | 213 | 1 | ||
| P2 - Publicity studies | 520 | 9.9% | 2 | |||
| W7 - Crafts | 513 | -4.6% | 146 | 25 | ||
| CC - Combinations within Biological Sciences | 508 | 25.7% | ||||
| T7 - American studies | 499 | -10.9% | ||||
| V4 - Archaeology | 499 | -6.4% | 26 | |||
| L0 - Social Studies: any area of study | 474 | 1 | ||||
| C4 - Genetics | 433 | |||||
| F9 - Others in Physical Sciences | 391 | |||||
| MM - Combinations within Law | 391 | 33 | 2 | |||
| R4 - Spanish studies | 390 | |||||
| C5 - Microbiology | 379 | |||||
| Y Combs of engineering/technology | 363 | |||||
| XX - Combinations within Education | 349 | 196 | ||||
| T9 - Others in non-European Langs & related | 317 | -51.20% | ||||
| R2 - German studies | 284 | |||||
| J4 - Polymers and Textiles | 277 | 4 | ||||
| D6 - Food and Beverage studies | 276 | 155 | 13 | |||
| R8 - European studies | 251 | |||||
| T2 - Japanese studies | 222 | |||||
| BB - Combinations within Subjects allied to Medicine | 220 | 3 | 14 | |||
| H5 - Naval Architecture | 209 | 10 | ||||
| J5 - Materials Technology not otherwise spec | 209 | 12 | ||||
| K3 - Landscape Design | 205 | 52 | 12 | |||
| Y Combs of engin/tech/building studies | 204 | 11 | ||||
| KK - Combinations within Architecture,Build & Plan | 189 | 24 | ||||
| Q2 - Comparative Literary studies | 181 | |||||
| G3 - Statistics | 174 | |||||
| F5 - Astronomy | 156 | |||||
| P1 - Information Services | 156 | |||||
| T1 - Chinese studies | 154 | |||||
| J6 - Maritime Technology | 151 | 5 | 1 | |||
| V9 - Others in Hist & Philosophical studies | 143 | |||||
| G0 - Mathematical & Comp Sci: any area | 137 | |||||
| Q5 - Celtic studies | 136 | 6 | ||||
| J7 - Biotechnology | 130 | |||||
| H0 - Engineering: any area of study | 125 | |||||
| T6 - Modern Middle-Eastern studies | 125 | |||||
| R7 - Russian and East European studies | 109 | |||||
| W0 - Creative Arts & Design: any area | 109 | |||||
| R0 - European Langs,Lit & related: any area | 96 | |||||
| TT - Combinations within non-European Langs & related | 94 | |||||
| V2 - History by Area | 91 | |||||
| P4 - Publishing | 86 | 22 | ||||
| R3 - Italian studies | 78 | |||||
| F0 - Physical Sciences: any area of study | 73 | |||||
| DD - Combinations within Vet Sci,Ag & related subjects | 69 | 11 | ||||
| G7 - Artificial Intelligence | 61 | 5 | ||||
| Q9 - Others in Linguistics,Classics & related | 55 | |||||
| X9 - Others in Education | 53 | 243 | ||||
| G2 - Operational Research | 52 | |||||
| D5 - Forestry | 50 | 103 | 1 | |||
| X2 - Research and Study Skills in Education | 49 | |||||
| G9 - Others in Mathematical & Computer Sci | 48 | |||||
| T3 - South Asian studies | 48 | |||||
| D9 - Others in Vet Sci,Ag & related subjects | 37 | |||||
| J2 - Metallurgy | 37 | |||||
| J1 - Minerals Technology | 31 | |||||
| T5 - African studies | 31 | |||||
| D7 - Agricultural Sciences | 30 | 1 | 28 | |||
| A9 - Others in Medicine and Dentistry | 19 | 23 | ||||
| C2 - Botany | 19 | |||||
| Q4 - Ancient Language studies | 17 | |||||
| JJ - Combinations within Technology | 15 | |||||
| N7 - Office Skills | 14 | 8 | ||||
| N0 - Business & Admin studies: any area | 13 | |||||
| R6 - Scandinavian studies | 13 | |||||
| C0 - Biological Sciences: any area of study | 12 | |||||
| T4 - Other Asian studies | 11 | |||||
| Q6 - Latin studies | 10 | |||||
| H9 - Others in Engineering | 9 | 15 | ||||
| K0 - Architecture,Build & Plan: any area | 8 | |||||
| K9 - Others in Architecture,Build & Plan | 5 | |||||
| F2 - Materials Science | 4 | |||||
| J0 - Technologies: any area of study | 3 | |||||
| R5 - Portuguese studies | 3 | |||||
| Q7 - Classical Greek studies | 1 | |||||
| Grand Total | 425,522 | 4.6% | 24,617 | 19.9% | 27,138 | 11.5% |
Table 6 notes
Foundation year courses are accounted for as Degree. 'Other' includes HND, HNC, Certificates of HE, Diplomas of HE (including those in social work, midwifery and nursing) and some postgraduate courses in social work. Percentage change is not shown if both the number of 2009 choices AND the number of 2008 choices is less than 500.
UCAS is a charity and is the world's leading shared admissions service for higher education. We manage applications for full time undergraduate courses, together with applications through GTTR (Graduate Teacher Training Registry), CUKAS (Conservatoires UK Admissions Service) and UKPASS (UK Postgraduate Application and Statistical Service). Since its inception in 1993, UCAS has processed around 30 million applications and placed over 5 million students on higher education courses.
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