The number of students accepted onto UK nursing programmes has fallen for a third year in a row, latest data from the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) has revealed.
Some 23,800 applicants have been accepted onto UK nursing courses for the incoming academic year – down 21% on 2021 and down 1% on 2023.
This was made up of 22,850 applicants from within the UK and 940 international students.
Accepted applications per nation
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In England, there were 18,420 acceptances – down 2% (450 students) from 2023 and down 21.5% (5,070 students) from 2021.
This comes after former chief nursing officer for England, Dame Ruth May, said the decision to remove the NHS bursary for student nurses in 2015 had been a ‘catastrophic decision’ which has had a lasting impact on the nursing workforce and during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, Scotland and Wales have both seen a rise in students accepted in 2023, but this was still a drop from 2021.
Scotland has seen 3,400 acceptances in 2024 – up 3% on 2023, but down 20% on 2021.
In Wales there were 1,200 students accepted onto nursing courses in 2024 – an increase of 14% on 2023, but again a decrease of 22% since 2021.
However, in Northern Ireland there were 780 students accepted this year – down 15% on 2023 and down 10% on 2021.
Concern over ‘continuing collapse’
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Executive director of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) in England Patricia Marquis said: ‘The continuing collapse in the number of people accepted onto nursing courses should act as a warning sign to government of the urgent need to act. Ignoring this now would be an act of abandonment at a time of crisis.’
She urged the government to take action to encourage more people to join the profession, adding: ‘The failure to attract more into nursing puts the profession and the future of patient care at risk.’
Despite the overall drop in acceptances, there was a slight increase in applicants aged between 17 to 20 who were accepted onto nursing courses this year.
This academic year 80 applicants aged 17 and under are due to start UK nursing courses this autumn, up from 70 the year before.
Almost 400 more 18-year-olds have been accepted onto UK nursing coursed compared to 2023, with 6,910 applicants versus 6,520.
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Today’s data shows the biggest drop in accepted applications from mature students, with almost 300 fewer 25-to-29-year-olds and 350 fewer applicants aged 35 and above being accepted onto UK nursing courses this year.
