Member Article

Extra uni places for STEM subjects

The government says there will be 10,000 more university places in England this autumn, mainly in the STEM subjects - science, technology, engineering, and maths.

The extra places will be allocated by the higher education funding council in consultation with universities, and will be part-funded: universities will get students’ tuition fees but not grants for teaching and other support.

Funding is from existing budgets and in part by cutting student loan repayment holidays from five years to two.

The idea was to help graduates buying a home or starting a family - but the government has now decided the extra places in a recession are a greater priority.

Latest application figures from the admissions service Ucas showed more people wanting to study the subjects affected by the announcement.

The move comes as demand for university places continues to rise, with 10% more applicants this year than last across the UK - about 50,000 people.

Sarah Green, Regional Director of the CBI North East, said: “Demand from businesses for ‘STEM’ graduates is only set to grow over the coming years, as the UK draws more heavily on innovation and technology for jobs, growth and global competitiveness.

“Maintaining the quality of degree courses is equally vital, however, and no-one would benefit if universities and the Government tried to offer extra science courses ‘on the cheap’.”

Manufacturing body EEF also welcomed the decision, but expressed concern at the absence of extra funding for the teaching of STEM subjects.

Tony Sarginson from EEF said: “Ministers are right to respond to the rise in demand for places this year, but the lack of extra funding for teaching is a big disappointment. The focus on STEM subjects is very welcome, but it is a worrying precedent that the previous pledge not to reduce funding per student seems now to have been abandoned.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .