NUS Scotland calls for action on drop-out and widening access rates

New statistics from HESA today show that Scotland's record on drop-out rates and attracting students from poorer backgrounds to our universities remains among the worst in the UK.

Of the 29,625 degree entrants into Scotland's universities 9.9% had dropped out by the end of their first year. This compares with an average of 8.6% across the UK and 8.4% in England (see note 2). According to government research, financial stress is the most common factor in students considering dropping out (see note 1).

Equally, Scotland has a poor record on widening access with 28.2% of entrants in 2008/09 from socio-economic groups 4-7 (compared with a UK average of 33.2%) and 86.7% of entrants from state schools (compared to a UK average of 88.5%). These represent the worst rates in the UK.

Liam Burns, President of NUS Scotland, said:

"I'm very disappointed to see Scotland's continuing poor record on student drop-out and on getting people from poorer backgrounds to study at university. We remain the worst in the UK for attracting people from poorer backgrounds to our universities and our record on drop-out remains among the worst in the UK.

"While drop-outs are usually complicated, we do know that a large factor in many is not having enough money to get by. Levels of student hardship, and debt on the likes of credit cards and bank loans, are through the roof. With even the poorest Scottish students receiving almost £2000 below the poverty line it's perhaps no surprise that our record on attracting and keeping students at Scottish universities is poor.

"These levels of drop-out represent a huge waste of talent and a waste of precious government resources. By investing a little more in student support, ensuring students can concentrate fully on their studies, we can release a great deal more in savings from reduced drop out rate.

"We must do better at attracting talented people from all backgrounds to study at university and we must do more to help them to get through their courses once they are there. That's why we believe we need a fundamental look at how we can increase student support to at least the poverty line, how we can reduce levels of hardship, and ultimately how we can properly support students to reach their full potential.

Liam Burns added:

"I know the Scottish Government are working hard in this area, and we welcome the additional investment in student support for next year. However, even after this there will still be a long way to go before Scottish students get the financial help they need.