ACCESS to university for Scottish students from the most deprived areas has increased to a near record high, official figures released show.
The latest Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) figures for 2023/24 show that 16.7% of full-time first degree entrants to Scottish universities came from the nation’s 20% most deprived areas. This marks an increase from 16.3% the previous year.
The figures also show an increase overall in the number of Scottish-based students at Scottish universities to 173,795, as well as a rise in full-time Scottish first degree entrants.
However, non-EU international student numbers have seen a decline in 2023-24 following changes by the UK Government to the immigration system, such as ending the inclusion of family members on student visas.
The figures come after the Education Secretary was challenged about the state of the finances of several institutions including the University of Dundee, which announced on Tuesday it plans to cut 632 jobs in an effort to deal with a £35 million deficit.
Secretary Jenny Gilruth said her party will “never” bring back tuition fees for Scots amid funding shortfalls at a number of Scottish universities.
Gilruth previously pointed to a combination of Brexit and changes to visa rules to have impacted the number of international students coming to study.
Minister for Higher and Further Education Graeme Dey said: “These figures show the significant progress of Scotland’s universities in making higher education not only more inclusive, but also attracting a rising number of Scots overall.
“The number of Scots from the most deprived backgrounds entering university on full-time first degree courses is now up 37% since the establishment of the Commission on Widening Access by this Government.
“This means many more people, no matter their background, have the opportunity to prosper in their lives.
“We recognise the issues raised by the sector around a decline in international student numbers and damaging UK migration policies which is why we have proposed a ‘Scottish Graduate Visa’ which would allow us to retain international students after they graduate from Scottish institutions.”
