Entry rates into higher education
Published
1. Main facts and figures
- in 2024, students from the Chinese ethnic group had the highest entry rate into higher education (66.1%) and White students had the lowest (29.8%)
- students from the Chinese ethnic group had the highest entry rate into higher education in every year from 2006 to 2024, and White students had the lowest (except for in 2006)
- in every ethnic group, the entry rate into higher education has increased over time between 2006 and 2024
- the Chinese ethnic group was the only group where entry rates were lower in 2024 than in 2023 (by 3 percentage points) – for all other ethnic groups, the entry rate either stayed the same or went up slightly
Further research
Recent research shows that young people from almost all ethnic minority backgrounds were more likely to go to university by age 19 than White British pupils. This was the case even when accounting for prior attainment or socio-economic background. These differences were small for high-attaining students, but very large for students with lower school attainment. Lower-attaining ethnic minority students appear to strongly prefer university study over other options.
2. Things you need to know
What the data measures
The data measures the percentage of 18 year olds who were accepted into higher education in the UK (the 'entry rate'), by ethnicity.
The data includes students from state schools in England – those funded directly by the government or their local authority. It only counts students who applied to full time undergraduate courses through UCAS (the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service).
Percentages are rounded to 1 decimal place.
Not included in the data
Students whose ethnicity was not known are not included in the data.
The ethnic groups used in the data
Data is shown for the following 6 ethnic groups:
- Asian
- Black
- Chinese
- Mixed
- White
- Other
Data is shown for these groups as a whole. This is to make sure group sizes are big enough to make reliable generalisations.
Methodology
The data does not take into account students’ academic results at A level (or equivalent) and other characteristics, which can affect their likelihood of going into HE.
You can see the average score of students taking A levels and other qualifications, by ethnicity.
The percentages on this page are estimates based on data from schools and UCAS. Every student’s details need to match fully across the different databases or they are not included. This means the estimates on this page are likely to be lower than the real value.
In the data file
Download the data to see estimates by ethnicity and gender.
3. By ethnicity over time
| Asian | Black | Chinese | Mixed | White | Other | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Asian % | Asian Number of state school pupils | Black % | Black Number of state school pupils | Chinese % | Chinese Number of state school pupils | Mixed % | Mixed Number of state school pupils | White % | White Number of state school pupils | Other % | Other Number of state school pupils |
| 2006 | 34.5 | 12,555 | 21.6 | 4,280 | 53.6 | 1,150 | 22.9 | 2,620 | 21.8 | 107,780 | 27.0 | 1,210 |
| 2007 | 34.6 | 12,245 | 23.1 | 4,730 | 52.8 | 1,215 | 24.3 | 2,950 | 22.2 | 108,515 | 27.1 | 1,355 |
| 2008 | 35.7 | 13,360 | 25.7 | 5,575 | 52.0 | 1,135 | 25.0 | 3,340 | 23.5 | 116,995 | 27.9 | 1,375 |
| 2009 | 36.1 | 13,800 | 27.0 | 5,970 | 52.6 | 1,125 | 25.7 | 3,810 | 24.1 | 121,815 | 27.8 | 1,470 |
| 2010 | 35.0 | 14,070 | 28.4 | 6,415 | 52.6 | 1,180 | 25.6 | 4,150 | 24.2 | 121,715 | 27.8 | 1,570 |
| 2011 | 37.0 | 15,210 | 31.7 | 7,460 | 60.1 | 1,300 | 28.9 | 4,900 | 25.8 | 124,340 | 30.5 | 1,815 |
| 2012 | 36.1 | 15,225 | 31.4 | 7,590 | 57.1 | 1,205 | 27.8 | 5,065 | 24.7 | 118,145 | 30.6 | 1,995 |
| 2013 | 38.6 | 16,645 | 34.7 | 8,870 | 57.4 | 1,255 | 29.2 | 5,550 | 26.1 | 121,895 | 32.0 | 2,145 |
| 2014 | 39.8 | 17,740 | 36.0 | 9,435 | 59.3 | 1,320 | 31.0 | 6,300 | 27.3 | 124,820 | 34.3 | 2,365 |
| 2015 | 42.3 | 19,720 | 38.4 | 10,565 | 61.0 | 1,325 | 32.3 | 7,025 | 27.9 | 129,080 | 36.8 | 2,635 |
| 2016 | 44.1 | 21,205 | 39.1 | 10,655 | 60.9 | 1,240 | 33.4 | 7,485 | 28.8 | 130,205 | 38.0 | 2,830 |
| 2017 | 45.8 | 22,610 | 40.3 | 11,055 | 63.0 | 1,235 | 34.0 | 7,795 | 29.3 | 129,860 | 40.1 | 3,105 |
| 2018 | 46.7 | 23,855 | 41.1 | 11,565 | 66.2 | 1,275 | 33.9 | 7,890 | 29.5 | 126,295 | 40.1 | 3,255 |
| 2019 | 50.3 | 26,530 | 44.5 | 12,525 | 68.0 | 1,320 | 35.5 | 8,500 | 30.3 | 124,680 | 43.3 | 3,610 |
| 2020 | 53.1 | 29,605 | 47.5 | 13,870 | 71.7 | 1,290 | 39.0 | 9,795 | 32.6 | 131,115 | 46.6 | 3,960 |
| 2021 | 54.9 | 31,930 | 48.6 | 15,255 | 72.1 | 1,410 | 40.8 | 11,255 | 33.3 | 137,210 | 48.1 | 4,570 |
| 2022 | 53.9 | 32,815 | 50.6 | 16,755 | 70.7 | 1,365 | 39.3 | 11,750 | 32.2 | 135,460 | 47.8 | 4,975 |
| 2023 | 50.8 | 32,505 | 47.7 | 16,840 | 69.1 | 1,450 | 36.2 | 11,695 | 29.8 | 127,275 | 43.9 | 5,005 |
| 2024 | 51.4 | 34,505 | 48.0 | 17,505 | 66.1 | 1,615 | 37.0 | 12,800 | 29.8 | 128,025 | 43.9 | 5,315 |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity over time’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity over time’ (CSV)
Summary of Entry rates into higher education By ethnicity over time Summary
The data shows that, in 2024:
- 66.1% of 18 year olds from the Chinese ethnic group were accepted to higher education in the UK – the highest entry rate out of all ethnic groups
- 29.8% of White people were accepted – the lowest entry rate
- the Chinese ethnic group was the only group whose entry rates were lower than in 2023 (by 3 percentage points) – for all other ethnic groups, the entry rate either stay the same or went up slightly
Between 2006 and 2024:
- students from the Chinese ethnic group had the highest entry rate every year, and White students had the lowest, except for 2006 when Black students had the lowest rates
- the entry rate went up in every ethnic group
- the entry rate for Black people went up from 21.6% to 48.0% – the largest increase out of all ethnic groups
- the entry rate for White people went up from 21.8% to 29.8%
4. Data sources
Source
Type of data
Administrative data
Type of statistic
Non-official statistics
Publisher
Universities and Colleges Admissions Service
Publication frequency
Yearly
Purpose of data source
The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) End of Cycle Report provides data about participation and progression in higher education admissions.
5. Download the data
This file contains the following: measure, ethnicity, ethnicity_type, time, time_type, geography, geography_type, geography_code, gender, age, value, value_type, numerator, denominator.