Visa applications to study in the UK fall sharply in the decisive month
Home Office figures show 360,700 sponsored study visa applications in the year to August, down 16 per cent year on year, with August itself down about a third on 2023 — and August is the month that decides September arrivals. Separate Enroly data shows confirmations of acceptance down 27 per cent and refusals up 30 per cent. This is the shortfall behind the course closures and job cuts at UK universities.
Research Professional News, 10 September
Ofqual confirms the rules for V Levels
Ofqual has confirmed how V Levels, Foundation Certificates and Occupational Certificates will be regulated — the qualifications intended as the technical route into skilled work alongside A-levels. UCAS has already said V Levels will carry tariff points, so the practical question for anyone taking one is which universities accept them for which courses, and that varies by department.
Five things learned from watching five young men apply
A sector figure writes about her son and his friends going through this year’s application cycle, and what it showed about how young men choose — or decline to choose — university. Male application rates have been falling for a decade, and this is a close-range account of the reasoning rather than another statistic about it.