Large increase in applications to study at Abertay University

Abertay University is reporting a surge in applications as people look to education as a means of combating the recession.

The institution reported a 27% rise in applications for its courses, up to 5656 from 4435 last year.

It was one of the largest increases experienced by a Scottish university, at a time when applications to “traditional” universities such as St Andrews, Edinburgh and Glasgow all experienced a drop.

The data, released by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS), showed that in total 583,546 people had applied for a place in higher education this year, up from 570,556 last year.

Lesley Balfour, student recruitment manager at Abertay University, said they were delighted at the strong increase in applications.