Essex University undergraduate numbers fall 25 per cent in three years

Data taken from the university’s annual financial statements shows the amount of money brought in from UK and EU undergraduates has fallen by 25 per cent, from £111.2million in 2020-21 down to £83.4milion in 2022-23.

An FOI request submitted by the Gazette has found the number of undergraduates studying at the institution is also falling and is now at 10,386 for the most recent academic year, down from 13,745 in 2020-21.

Profits – Essex University is taking in more money from tuition fees despite its falling number of undergraduates (Image: Newsquest)

But Essex University is raking in record amounts of money from tuition fees despite the decline in number of UK and EU undergraduates, thanks to a boom in fees from international students studying at the institution.

In two years, Essex University has more than doubled its income from international student tuition fees – in 2022-23, its income for that metric sat at £107.6million, more than double the £52.7million recorded in 2020-21.

Additionally, the majority of Essex University’s tuition fee income last year came from money paid by international students, rather than EU and UK students.

Essex University itself has admitted it is concerned about the falling number of undergraduates studying there.

Target – a section of a financial report reads the university will be leaving not stone unturned in attempts to recruit more students from London and the eastern counties (Image: Newsquest)

A section of the university’s financial statements for the year 2022-23 read: “Tuition fee income for the annual year 2022-23 was above target and we remain hopeful this will be the case for annual year 2023-24.

“Nonetheless we are concerned that our intake of home undergraduates fell for the third year in a row.

“With improving league table rankings, we will be leaving no stone unturned in ensuring that we recruit our fair share of the growing numbers of potential students in London and the eastern counties and from across the United Kingdom for 2024-25.”

A spokesman for Essex University said: “We are seeing strong undergraduate applications this year from UK students interested in studying at the University of Essex following several years disrupted by COVID and the accompanying changes to the way exams were assessed. However, this has been exacerbated by the loss of between 20-25% of our undergraduate students following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU.

“We have continued to successfully recruit both graduate and postgraduate taught international students, which has meant our overall income from tuition fees has actually increased. In 2022-23 through to 2023-24 we’ve also secured the highest-ever levels of research income to support our growing research impact.”

“In 2022-23, our income continued to grow, reaching a record level of £334m, up from £284m in the previous year and £250m in 2019-2020. Through careful financial management, we are working towards generating a 1% surplus in this financial year, despite the pressure the wider higher education sector is under at a national level.

“We are working very hard to continue to attract the brightest and best students from Essex and around the world. This month’s National Student Survey results showed we were the strongest university in the East of England for positive student feedback and we remain committed to excellence in education and research.

“Our three-year forecast indicates a return to a growth trajectory is likely, through a growing UK undergraduate recruitment pool, and a significant increase in students accepting offers for this October, a more positive environment for international student recruitment and significant opportunities for transnational education partnerships.”