New data from the Office for Students shows an increase in postgraduate masters’ student numbers since the introduction of the postgraduate masters’ loan. The new data is published alongside data from the Intentions After Graduation Survey, which shows that the proportion of students who state their intention to continue their studies and end up going into postgraduate education has increased. Read More.

The numbers of students starting university courses after studying BTECs is rising. However, these students are less likely to graduate with a top degree than their peers who took A levels, according to a new study. The report argues that there are still misconceptions about the abilities and qualifications of those who choose to study alternatives to A levels. The University of Sheffield, which carried out the research, said it is "crucial" that these misconceptions are challenged t...

Parents across the East have spoken out against the education system - claiming it is failing a 'lost generation' of children with special educational needs. It's after a poll by the National Education Union revealed more than 40% of children over the age of four are not in full time school. It also found that half of parents aren't happy about provision and nearly three-quarters believe they aren't given adequate support to help their child. Michelle White's son Alex was 13 before his needs wer...

One thousand children from disadvantaged backgrounds will attend boarding school for free by 2023 under plans revealed by a charity today. The number represents a doubling of pupils receiving bursaries from the Royal National Children’s SpringBoard Foundation to attend state and independent boarding schools. Ian Davenport, chief executive of Royal SpringBoard, is set to announce the new target at the Boarding Schools' Association (BSA) conference, starting tomorrow, in Brighton. Read More.

It is often argued that higher education moves slowly, and that is never more true than where widening access is concerned. Policy-makers in individual countries are increasingly recognising that boosting participation in higher education means extending participation to hitherto under-represented groups and that those from all social backgrounds need to complete and succeed when they enter. But this recognition is too often not backed up by action, and while higher education institutions may be...

Back in the summer of 1997, Helena Kennedy proclaimed that the case for widening participation to higher and further education was “irresistible”. National strategies were drawn up, Whitehall circulars issued, and, two years later, Tony Blair stood before the Labour conference and pledged that 50 per cent of young people should go to university by 2010. Things seemed simpler then. While progress has been made in the overall rate of young people going to higher education in universities and FE co...

Former students will be able to earn more before they have to start paying back their tuition fee loans. English and Welsh students who took out loans from September 2012 onwards - when fees in England rose to up to £9,000 a year - will now start to pay back when they earn £25,000 a year instead of £21,000. The government says the move could save graduates up to £360 a year. Read More.

Since joining the Office for Students’ (OfS) Board and Student Panel, I have often been asked about my motivations and my route to higher education. For me, it was simple. I knew I wanted to learn a skill and gain a profession; the one that suited my talents was civil engineering. I have been privileged with the opportunities of higher education and a wealth of experience at university. I am the youngest of six children and the first in my family to go to university. My parents always instilled ...

Latest data shows an increase in the number of degree students leaving higher education in, during or after their first year of study. What factors may be affecting this trend? Recent HESA performance indicator data has shown another increase in the proportion of degree students who are no longer in higher education a year after starting. The figure now stands at 7.5 per cent of UK domiciled full-time first degree entrants. This is the fourth successive year that this increase has oc...

Theresa May will urge people to “throw away” the “outdated attitude” that university is the only desirable route for young people and that going into vocational training “is something for other people’s children”. In a speech in Derbyshire to launch a wide-ranging review into post-18 education, the Prime Minister will call for a parity of esteem between academic and technical options so we can “create a system of tertiary education that works for all our young people”. Read more.