The UK Statistics Authority has designated these statistics as Accredited Official Statistics (previously called National Statistics), in accordance with the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007 and signifying compliance with the Code of Practice for Statistics. Find out more about the Code of Practice for Statistics at the UK Statistics Authority’s website.

Overview

An infographic that highlights key statistics from the publication. It shows the total number of entrants, students and the initial participation rate for Higher Education in Scotland.

Introduction

  1. This report contains information relating to higher education (HE) provision and attainment in higher education institutions (HEIs) and colleges in Scotland. Student data from Scottish HEIs and colleges have been combined to allow reporting on all HE provision delivered in Scotland. HE consists of courses delivered at SCQF level 7 and above. See the SCQF Interactive Framework for a breakdown of qualifications at each level.

Entrants

Figure 1: Entrants to Higher Education Courses at Scottish Institutions by Level of Study, 2014-15 to 2023-24

Academic year Research Postgraduate Taught Postgraduate First Degree HNC/HND Other Sub-degree
2014-15 4,175 27,935 48,075 28,215 25,255
2015-16 4,175 28,630 49,095 28,215 24,975
2016-17 4,165 31,200 50,245 29,700 24,480
2017-18 4,365 33,610 51,690 28,855 23,310
2018-19 4,510 35,345 52,565 27,860 23,630
2019-20 4,240 40,195 53,035 27,140 22,555
2020-21 4,535 49,250 57,030 29,550 23,345
2021-22 4,350 56,370 54,875 24,455 24,970
2022-23 4,055 57,830 52,935 22,050 27,565
2023-24 4,105 50,665 51,285 22,405 26,570