University computer science places up seven per cent

Above-average growth in study counters decline at A-level and GCSE

More university students are applying to study IT

The number of UK students applying to study computer science degrees at university this year has risen by seven per cent, despite the continuing decline in A-level and GCSE exams in the subject.

According to the provisional final figures for university acceptances released by Ucas, the organisation that manages applications for degree places, 11,328 people will begin a computer science degree this year.

Across all subjects, the number of students entering university rose 5.6 per cent, suggesting above-average growth for technology study.

"This year has been unprecedented in many respects. Significantly increased applications and far more students are being accepted at a university or college than ever before,” said Virginia Isaac, acting chief executive at Ucas.

The fastest-growing areas of study at university this year are nursing (up 20 per cent), journalism (15.7 per cent), aerospace engineering (20.7 per cent), animal science (17.5 per cent) and imaginative writing (28.1 per cent).

Further down the education chain, the attitude towards IT is very different. The number of students taking GCSE information and communication technology (ICT) exams fell by 14 per cent this year, the third consecutive year of decline.

Numbers have fallen by a third (33 per cent) in the past three years, from a total of 109,601 in 2006 to 73,519 this year.

The decline mirrors that seen in computing and ICT A-levels, which both saw a drop in numbers of more than 20 per cent this year, according to figures from the Joint Council for Qualifications.