A record number of UK students from disadvantaged backgrounds have applied to uni this year

A record number of students from the poorest backgrounds in the UK have applied to go to university this year, new stats show.

According to data published by university admissions service UCAS, 28 per cent of 18-year-olds from the most disadvantaged areas in the UK have applied to uni this year, compared to 26.4 per cent last year and 17.8 per cent in 2013.

The deadline for university applications closed in January, which also saw the overall application number of UK 18-year-olds applying increase by 5 per cent from 306,200 in 2021 to 320,420 in 2022.

Overall, record application rates for 18-year-olds were achieved in three of the four UK nations: 44.1 per cent in England, 37.5 per cent in Wales and 52.6 per cent in Northern Ireland.

In Scotland, the application rate of 35.4 per cent was the second highest after last year’s record high.

However, whilst general applications went up, the number of UK mature applicants fell by 17 per cent compared to 2021. The drop followed a surge in applications last year, when, at the height of the pandemic, mature applications jumped in one year by 24 per cent.

Clare Marchant, chief executive of UCAS, said the pandemic had led to universities putting more conferences and events online, which may have helped disadvantaged young people find out more about applying to university.