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DOUBLE DIP IN CREATIVE ARTS APPLICATIONS
01.02.2012 / News / 0 Comments
University applications down by 16%
Applications for university creative arts and design courses are down at almost double the rate of other courses, according to the latest figures.
Returns from Ucas, the university admissions organisation, shows that applications for courses in the creative sector for 2012 are down 16 per cent, compared to an overall drop in applications of over 8 per cent. Combined arts applications also fell by 16%.
The figures are even worse for the University of the Creative Arts, one of the flagship institutions in the sector. The university, which has campuses in Canterbury, Epsom, Farnham, Maidstone and Rochester – saw applications fall by 29 per cent on last year.
However, a UCA spokesman said that this year’s figures compare with a 27% increase in 2011 and a 94% increase (the second highest in the country) in 2010. “In this context, a fall in applications represents a natural adjustment for us.”
She added, “This year, despite the decrease in applications, we still have three times the number of students applying for the 1,879 undergraduate places that we can offer.
But Dan Jarvis MP, Labour’s shadow culture minister, said the news was deeply worrying. “The Labour Party warned throughout the tuition fees debate that the arts and creative subjects would be hit hard by the trebling of fees. Sadly, this has been proved right.”
He added, “The University of the Creative Arts has produced some of this country’s most decorated artists and designers, including the likes of Zandra Rhodes CBE, Karen Millen OBE and Jeff Banks CBE. The University’s capacity to deliver the next generation of world leading artists and designers has clearly suffered a setback as a result of the Government’s tuition fees policy.”
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