However, NUS pointed out that thousands of applicants would still be disappointed due to the Government’s decision to restrict extra places to science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects.
NUS Vice President for Higher Education, Aaron Porter, said:
“We are pleased that the Prime Minister has listened to our concerns and decided to increase the number of university places for next year, in light of the huge increase in applications and the fact that employment opportunities for young people are lower than they have been for a generation.
“However, thousands of people who have applied to study non-STEM subjects are still going to be without a place in the summer.
“We understand the current pressures on public finances, but the Government must also make the right long-term decisions. It is surely better to bear the cost of additional university places now than to shoulder the burden of long-term unemployment later.”
NUS was also critical of the Government’s decision to restrict the student loan “repayment holiday” to two years.
Aaron Porter added:
“Making graduates pay back their student loans only two years after leaving university will severely hamper their chances of getting on the property ladder. This is a very short-sighted cost-cutting move by the Government at a time when the property market needs as many new buyers as possible.”