Almost 170,000 students are expected to miss out a university place this year and many of them are now considering paying higher fees to obtain a degree. At the same time private universities and other institutions that provide degrees have become very popular among A-level students who fear that they may fail to enter universities this year.
Such private universities as Buckingham and BPP have already started preparing for thousands of calls on Thursday when the results come out. BPP, that has 1,000 places for students who are interested in such disciplines as business studies, accounting and finance, has increased the staff dealing with the calls up to 35 people compared to 4 the last year. The university has already got more than 200 calls from pupils enquiring about its courses. Buckingham said that the number of pupils who were inquiring on courses at this time last year was up about 15%.
A major survey published in custom papers today has revealed that one out of five students in England is not satisfied with the higher education. The annual National Student Survey found that only 81% of those who are taking university courses are satisfied. The cost of study at a private university can become considerably higher.
David Willetts's move for awarding BPP university status resulted in the desire of many governments to increase the number of private institutions in higher education. BPP's chief executive, Carl Lygo, said that as in many universities there is a limit of places, BPP is expected to be in demand. Although nowadays its students do not get student loans, the university hopes that soon they will be acceptable for them.
Peter Houillon, the chief executive of Kaplan UK, said: "We've seen for a number of years that there's going to be a significant change in higher education and seeing a role for the private sector." Spencer Coles, director of student recruitment, adds: "In the market there's a lot of nervousness from students".
