Some 33,870 Chinese students applied to UK universities and colleges via UCAS by the June cutoff this year, up from 30,860 in 2024. It marks a record number of Chinese students applying to institutions in this way.
Other notable year-on-year increases can be seen in applicants from Ireland (up 15%), Nigeria (up 23%) and the US (up 14%) which have contributed to a slight overall increase in international applicants using UCAS, the data shows.
The total number of undergraduate international applicants using the UCAS system was at 138,460 by June 2025 – up 2.2% on June 2024 numbers.
But while the number of offers made to international graduates outside of the EU continues to grow – up 10.7% year on year – this cohort of students was the least likely to be made an offer, at 63.5%.
“The June data is most useful for telling us what has happened since January,” explained Mark Corver, founder and former MD of dataHE, who suggested that one area of disappointment for UK universities will be continuing weak demand from the EU once “special case” Ireland is taken out, with young applicants from the EU fractionally lower than last June.
“Universities value EU students for diversity in their international intakes and the lower geopolitical and distance related risks. They would have liked to have seen growth here but will be pleased that the fall is the smallest yet since EU students fell into the international fee category,” said Corver.
However, the data released today does not offer the full picture, with UCAS pointing out that its data only shows a partial view of undergraduate international admissions in the UK.
With 154,000 Chinese students studying in the UK in 2022/23, the British Universities’ China Association (BUCA) said the 10% rise in Chinese undergraduate applications via UCAS reflects “sustained interest in UK higher education”. Several key drivers underpin this demand, including domestic academic pressures and tighter immigration rules in other study destinations such as the US, Canada and Australia.
“More families are opting out of the highly competitive public high school system in favour of international schools, which provide a less stressful environment. These students are ineligible to sit the Gaokao and must pursue undergraduate education abroad,” the association’s executive committee explained to The PIE.
“The China market continues to play a pivotal role in international recruitment strategies for UK universities. However, changing student preferences, increasing global competition, and evolving regulatory frameworks are reshaping the landscape. A data-led, agile approach is essential to sustaining engagement and growth.”
And BUCA noted that while rising UCAS applications are encouraging, they do not guarantee conversion.
“Chinese students frequently apply to multiple countries. Rising tuition fees and living costs in the UK, coupled with increasing financial caution among families, also influence final decisions. Therefore, institutions must balance optimism with realistic financial planning.”
Chinese students frequently apply to multiple countries… institutions must balance optimism with realistic financial planning
British Universities’ China Association
With numbers from the US also attracting attention, Corver weighed in on the notion that the new Trump administration has made staying at home less attractive for US students.
“The number of young applicants is up 15%, a high but not exceptional year-on-year increase. But the growth in applicants over the past six months has been very normal, a bit below average in fact, which is perhaps not what you would expect to see if there was strong behavioural change,” he explained.
According to Corver, overall the June data is “a reminder that international demand (and recruitment) to full-time undergraduate through UCAS has been both growing, and doing so in a low variance way”.
“This likely reflects that the three year commitment and substantial fees means that the quality and suitability of the course are the primary factors. Universities know this, and many I know are looking to increase their share of international recruitment to these programs rather than the easier, but much more volatile, PGT courses,” he said.
“The large increases in offer rates this year are one sign of this, but we will have to wait to see if applicants follow through and take up the places as the cycle concludes.”
More than two million offers were made to people applying for UK undergraduate courses starting this September – 74,000 more than last year, a 9% increase since 2023. International students saw the biggest rise in offer rates, with 64% of their university applications being successful, up from 59% last year and 55% in 2023.
