University students facing course ‘cold spots’ as enrolments fall

New data analysis shows university “cold spots” are developing in some parts of the country, with courses in some subjects no longer being offered to students in certain regions.

A new data tool published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (Hesa) on Tuesday showed a sharp decline in students taking French and other language courses in recent years.

However, courses in other subjects, such as artificial intelligence, also increased rapidly during the same period.

While universities are cutting courses with low enrollment rates as the sector faces increasing financial difficulties, the government has announced annual increases in tuition fees to help universities cope with these shortfalls.

Data published by Hesa ​​showed that the number of full-time students on courses in French studies fell from 9,700 in the 2012/13 academic year to 3,700 by 2023/2024.

The number of those teaching language and field studies courses also decreased from 125,900 to 80,100 during this period.

The number of full-time students attending German and Scandinavian courses has fallen from 3,900 in 2012/13 to 1,400 in 2023/24.

However, artificial intelligence studies increased rapidly in this 12-year period; In 2012/13 there were 1,800 full-time students; this number fell to just 900 the following year, but rose to 9,100 in 2023/24.

Universities struggling with financial deficits have reduced teaching and staff roles in courses with low student numbers.

in November, Students and faculty members protested Following the University of Nottingham’s decision to suspend modern languages ​​and music courses, no new students will be admitted after 2026.

BBC News contacted the university for an update, but at the time a spokesperson said the courses were “unsustainable”, with many enrolling fewer than 10 students and no final decision had yet been made.

They said it before Support will be provided to current students in courses at risk of closure. to complete their education.

Emma Walkers, modern languages ​​course leader at Bilborough Sixth Form College in Nottingham, said her students would be left with nowhere locally to study languages ​​at university if the cuts continued.

Hesa, who published the new data tool, said the latest figures show that French diploma courses are no longer available in some places, with the number of students now concentrated in London, Oxford, Bristol and Bath.

But with more students wanting to live at home and go to university to limit their education costs, Emma says some of her students have nowhere to go.

“Most of the time, if a student is moving from Nottingham, they will end up moving to a more expensive city,” he said.

“If you come from a not-so-well-off family, going to London or Bath or Bristol is a huge amount of money to try and find.”

He said the decline in the number of students in French and other language courses showed that languages ​​were “not valued at all”.

Catherine Richards, principal of East Norfolk Sixth Form College, in another area where student enrollment in language courses is relatively low, believes the problem starts long before college.

“The challenge of finding a place in higher education starts in primary school and with the promotion of language learning,” he says.

He says schools in his area are offering fewer languages ​​at GCSE, leading to fewer students taking them at A level and going on to study at university.

In German, he says, course entry levels in schools and colleges across the county are so low that “it is no longer a valid language”.

He added that this was a “shame” because of the “wonderful teachers” in the district.

This sentiment is echoed by Prof René Koglbauer, former language teacher and chairman of the board of trustees of the Language Learning Association (ALL).

He says there are concerns that schools and sixth-form colleges in areas where language education is not available at university level may also stop offering A-level language courses.

“If you then drop the course at A level, students may end up deciding, ‘If I don’t get beyond GCSE, I’m not going to take that course,’” he says.

“You can see the downward spiral.”

Many universities now offer “ab initio” degree courses for languages, meaning you can start as a complete beginner – something Prof Koglbauer says has increased language uptake.

These intensive programmes, along with joint honors options and the introduction of non-European languages ​​such as Arabic and Mandarin, are part of a strategy to keep language study popular for undergraduates.

But to solve regional “cold spots”, Prof Koglbauer says universities may need to approach the issue differently.

To reach students, the sector “may need to think more about working collaboratively and pooling resources,” he says.