Challenges and opportunities: Impact of the higher education reforms on students, universities and colleges

The first comprehensive analysis of the impact of the 2012 changes to higher education funding has been published by HEFCE.
Latest UCAS data show that demand from young people for full-time courses in 2013-14 may be returning to previous levels following a dip in 2012-13. Entry to part-time courses has undergone more significant decline since 2010 [note 1]. Beneath these overall figures there is a mixed picture, with different institutions and groups of students affected in different ways.
Only when patterns of demand become more established will we know the answers to longer-term questions such as whether recruitment to postgraduate courses is affected, and whether recent positive trends in widening participation continue to hold up.
A new HEFCE observatory, to be established later this year, will continue to monitor these and other issues.
Read the report on the impact of the 2012 reforms.