Higher proportion of women on university courses than ever before


Gender balance

The university admissions service has revealed that 36 per cent more women than men have been accepted onto university courses.

The latest available figures show that 133,280 18-year old females from the UK have received university places, compared with 103,800 18-year old males; this is the largest difference ever recorded by Ucas at this stage of the admissions process.

The gap of 36 per cent between the two genders represents the slight growth from the 35 per cent recorded last year, and 31 per cent of five years ago.

It is expected that around 27 per cent of 18-year old men in the UK will go to university this year, compared to 37 per cent of same-age women.

Dr Mark Corver, Ucas’s director of analysis and research, said: “More UK 18-year-olds will be starting university this autumn than ever before but large differences in who goes remain.

“Our research has shown that the difference between 18-year-old men and women entering university is now similar to that between the richest and poorest halves of the population.

“The statistics today show the difference between men and women slowly growing wider.”

These figures come at the same time as data showing 6,600 fewer students have secured university places than this time last year, a 1.4 per cent fall. Overall, 482,150 students have received places in university courses.

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