Drop in number of home-grown students at Welsh unis

Students are not always guaranteed a university place, as the number of successful applicants fall

The number of Welsh applicants winning places at university has fallen, according to admissions service Ucas.

Overall 7.6% fewer Welsh applicants were accepted at universities across the UK in 2010 than the previous year.

This puts Wales bottom of the table compared to the rest of the UK although the assembly government said it follows an upward trend in recent years.

From September, the assembly government is introducing a cap on student numbers due to financial constraints.

In England there was no change in number of successful applicants, in Scotland it increased by 3.9% and in Northern Ireland there was a small decrease of 0.1%.

Ucas figures also show the number of Welsh students going to Welsh universities in 2010 dropped by 15.3%, compared to the previous year.

But the number of Welsh students attending university courses in England has increased by 12.6%.

BBC Wales education correspondent Ciaran Jenkins said in general, Welsh students like to stay in Wales.

"But if there are fewer places in Wales and more applicants from elsewhere coming here then there is a danger that Welsh students are going to get squeezed out."

He said the number of English students winning places at Welsh universities increased by 8%, which also impacted on Welsh students, but that A-level results were a factor.

"In general, the number of 'A' grades that Welsh students got was simply less than the number of 'A' grades English students got so with an increase in candidates from England, universities in Wales have been giving the places to people from over the border."

A Welsh Assembly Government spokesperson said: "Although acceptances of Welsh students to UK higher education institutions have decreased by 7.6% between 2009 and 2010, the overall trend in recent years has been an increase: up 0.4% on 2008 and 10.7% on 2005 (on a comparable basis)."

From September, the assembly government is introducing a cap on student numbers to save money, bringing Wales into line with the other UK nations.

In a statement announcing the cap last July, education minister Leighton Andrews said institutions were "fully aware" of the need for "prudence" when recruiting students.

He said the need for constraint at a time when public funding was tight "should not come as a surprise," with limits on student numbers already in operation in the other three UK nations.

"Every new full-time undergraduate student recruited by HE institutions from 2010/11 will increase the demand on student finance budgets by around £9,500 a year in grants and loans."

Mr Andrews said the student finance budget was increasing every year which was "partially the result of increased recruitment by HE institutions of full-time undergraduates eligible for statutory student support.

"In order to help alleviate this pressure we need to consider measures to manage the number of students who are recruited," he added.

It is expected that there will be a rush on university places from English students this year as students try to beat increased tuition fees of up to £9,000 which start in from September 2012.