A record 33,630 international students from outside the EU have been accepted onto degree courses in the UK driven by a 32% rise in accepted applicants from China, new UCAS data has revealed.
And despite Brexit concerns, there was also a small increase in the number of EU students accepted according to the university admissions service with 26,440 confirmed, up from 26,400 on 2018.
“[It’s] testament to students’ hard work and the attraction of our world-class universities and colleges”
France (2,590), Spain (2,280) and Poland (2,250) had the highest number of EU students acceptances according to the data, while a total of 7,490 (up 32%) students from China, 2,430 (up 8%) from India and 2,310 (up 1%) from Malaysia were also accepted onto courses.
In total 408,960 people from the UK and overseas had places confirmed, down 1% on 2018 figures.
However, a record 17.3% of 18-year-olds (18,900 students) from the most disadvantaged backgrounds in England were shown to have been accepted – a rise of 0.8% on 2018.
In Wales, 15.8% from the most disadvantaged backgrounds were accepted, and in Northern Ireland, the proportion was 13.2% – both new highs.
Across the UK, 28.2% of all 18-year-olds were found to have been accepted through UCAS, also a new record for A level results day, compared with 27.7% last year.
UCAS chief executive Clare Marchant described the figures as testament to the UK’s world-class higher education offering.
“The record proportions of disadvantaged students off to university, combined with the highest number of international students we’ve seen accepted at this point, is a testament to students’ hard work and the attraction of our world-class universities and colleges,” she said.
