1. About this report

This statistical bulletin provides information on enrolments of Northern Ireland (NI) domiciled students at UK Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and all students at NI HEIs. It is based on data supplied by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), the official agency for the collection of information on UK universities, which is now part of Jisc, the Designated Data Body for HE in England.

This bulletin is based on the first release of data from the newly developed HESA student data collection system delivered by their Data Futures transformation programme. A comprehensive quality assessment has been undertaken on the dataset and this is detailed in HESA’s 2022/23 Student Data Quality Report and their Data Quality and Insights resource.

The bulletin is divided into two main sections:

  1. Northern Ireland Domiciled students enrolled at UK HEIs.
  2. Enrolments at Northern Ireland HEIs.

As we recognise that users may also be interested in NI students enrolled at NI HEIs, additional information on this group can be obtained through the online Interactive Tables.

Detailed Excel/Open Data tables containing figures quoted in these sections are available from Enrolments at UK Higher Education Institutions: Northern Ireland Analysis 2022/23 | Department for the Economy (economy-ni.gov.uk)

Feedback

We welcome feedback from users on both the HTML format of this Enrolments Bulletin, as well as the Interactive Tables.

2. Key Points - 2022/23

Northern Ireland Domiciled students enrolled at UK HEIs

  • The number of enrolments of NI students at UK HEIs has changed little in net terms over the past decade, but has decreased 3% over the last year, indicative of a return to pre-pandemic levels.
  • Most NI students study full-time, with more females than males progressing into UK HEIs.
  • Compared with 2021/22, fewer NI students were enrolled on First degree and Postgraduate courses at UK HEIs, but more were enrolled on ‘Other undergraduate’ courses.
  • Over three-quarters (76%) of NI domiciled students were enrolled at NI HEIs, the highest proportion over the past decade.
  • Outside of Northern Ireland, the North West of England and Scotland are the most popular regions for NI students.
  • The highest proportion of enrolments were from Northern Ireland’s least deprived areas.
  • More than half of students at UK HEIs were enrolled on Broad STEM courses, including over a quarter on Narrow STEM courses.

Enrolments at Northern Ireland HEIs

  • Enrolments at NI HEIs have increased by a net 20% over the past decade and by a net 4% since the previous year.
  • Most students enrolled at NI HEIs were studying full-time, with more females than males enrolling.
  • The number of students on ‘other undergraduate’ and postgraduate courses increased over the most recent year, while those on first degree courses changed little.
  • Just over a quarter of students at NI HEIs were domiciled outside NI, with a record high of almost one-fifth (19%) of students coming from non-EU countries.
  • Almost half of students at NI HEIs were enrolled on Broad STEM related subjects, including nearly a quarter on Narrow STEM related subjects.

3. Northern Ireland domiciled students enrolled at UK Higher Education Institutions

10 Year Trend

The number of enrolments of NI students at UK HEIs has changed little in net terms over the past decade, but has decreased 3% over the last year, indicative of a return to pre-pandemic levels.

Over the decade between 2013/14 and 2022/23, there has been little net change (down 260) in NI domiciled enrolments at UK HEIs. In 2022/23, 64,045 NI students were enrolled at UK HEIs, representing a net 3% (2,055) decrease from the record high of 2021/22 (66,100). Indicative of a return to pre-pandemic levels, this is the first decline in enrolments following two years of increases from 2019/20.

Figure 1: 3% decrease in NI domiciled enrolments over the past year and little net change over the decade

NI domiciled students enrolled at UK HEIs - 2013/14 to 2022/23

Some of the sharp increase in 2020/21 enrolments relates to the change in how A level grades were awarded in 2020 in light of the pandemic, leading to an increase in candidates meeting their offer conditions. Alongside this, there was an increase in the number of available undergraduate places offered by NI HEIs. In addition, uncertainty regarding employment prospects in the early months of the pandemic may also have contributed to an increase in postgraduate study. These factors continued through to 2021/22, but as COVID restrictions were lifted, enrolments in 2022/23 have begun to return to pre-pandemic levels.

Mode of Study and Sex

Most NI students study full-time and more females than males have been progressing into UK HEIS.

In 2022/23, 71% of NI domiciled enrolments were full-time, the same as in 2021/22. In comparison with 2021/22, full-time enrolments have decreased by 3% (from 47,255 to 45,665), whereas part-time enrolments have decreased by 2% (from 18,845 to 18,375).

Females accounted for 59% of NI students enrolled at UK HEIs in 2022/23; with similar proportions of females (71%) and males (72%) studying full-time. This gap between the sexes does not begin at the point of entry to HEIs, but can be observed earlier in the educational system. In NI, females are more likely than males to stay on in full-time education at school after age 16.

Level of Study

Fewer NI students are enrolling on First degree and Postgraduate courses at UK HEIs, but more are enrolling on ‘Other undergraduate’ courses.

First degree enrolments decreased in number by 3%, from 49,175 in 2021/22 to 47,560 in 2022/23, postgraduate enrolments decreased by 6%, from 13,250 to 12,395, while ‘other undergraduate’ enrolments increased by 11%, from 3,675 to 4,085.

The increase in ‘other undergraduate’ enrolments compared with last year can almost solely be attributed to enrolments at the Open University, especially those for institutional credit. Enrolments on these courses at ‘other undergraduate’ level increased from 1,365 in 2021/22 to 1,945 this year.

Location of Study

Over three-quarters of NI students were enrolled at NI HEIs.

Of the 64,045 NI domiciled students enrolled at UK HEIs in 2022/23, over three-quarters (76%, 48,390) were enrolled at NI HEIs (including 12% (7,435) studying at the OU), with 24% (15,645) studying at HEIs in GB. This is the highest proportion studying at NI HEIs over the decade.

As highlighted in the Northern Ireland Skills Barometer 2023 - 2033, after Scotland, NI has the second-highest indigenous student retention rate of all UK regions.

The most popular regions for NI students studying in GB were the North West of England and Scotland, with 5,095 and 3,250 NI students enrolled at HEIs in these regions respectively. Other popular regions were the North East of England, with 1,340 NI students, and London, with 1,015.

Similar proportions of NI domiciled males (24%) and females (25%) were studying at GB HEIs in 2022/23.

Multiple Deprivation Measure

The highest proportion of enrolments were from Northern Ireland’s least deprived areas.

Of the 63,850 NI domiciled students enrolled at UK HEIs in 2022/23 whose postcodes were known, the highest proportion (25%) were from the least deprived Multiple Deprivation Measure (MDM) areas in NI (Quintile 5), while the lowest proportion (14%) were from the most deprived quintile (Quintile 1).

Figure 2: The highest proportion of enrolments were from Northern Ireland’s least deprived areas and the lowest from the most deprived areas

NI domiciled students enrolled at UK HEIs by mode of study and multiple deprivation measure quintile - 2022/23

Subject of Study

More than half of NI students were enrolled on Broad STEM courses at UK HEIs, including over a quarter on Narrow STEM courses.

In 2022/23, the most popular subject areas for NI students studying at UK HEIs were: ‘Subjects allied to medicine’ (which includes subjects such as nursing, pharmacy, occupational therapy and physiotherapy), with 11,450 (18%) enrolments; ‘Business and management’ (which includes subjects such as business studies, management studies, accounting, marketing and finance), with 6,895 (11%) enrolments; and ‘Social sciences’, with 6,350 (10%) enrolments.

Figure 4: Proportion of NI domiciled students enrolled at UK HEIs in Broad and Narrow STEM subjects by sex – 2022/23

STEM Enrolments Male Female Total
Broad STEM 54% 51% 52%
Narrow STEM 38% 17% 26%

4. Enrolments at Northern Ireland Higher Education Institutions

10 Year trend

Enrolments at NI HEIs have increased by a net 20% over the past decade and by a net 4% since the previous year.

Enrolments at NI HEIs have increased by a net 20% (11,390) over the past decade, from 56,125 in 2013/14 to 67,515 in 2022/23. Including a 4% increase on 2021/22 (64,675), enrolments have been increasing year-on-year since 2017/18 (54,020).

Figure 5: 20% increase in enrolments at NI HEIs over the decade and 4% increase since the previous year

Enrolments at NI HEIs - 2013/14 to 2022/23

This increase in enrolments, particularly over the past four years, can partially be explained by a rise in the number of students studying at Ulster University’s London and Birmingham campuses. These are courses that have been jointly developed by Ulster University and QA Higher Education. Although these students are based in Birmingham and London, they are registered to Ulster University. Enrolments at these campuses rose by a net 5,720, from 550 in 2018/19 to 6,570 in 2022/23, with a rise of 32% (1,605) between 2021/22 (4,970) and 2022/23 (6,570). The majority of these enrolments are full-time at postgraduate level.

Another contributing factor over the past couple of years has been uptake of Institutional Credit courses at the Open University. These saw an increase in enrolments at the ‘other undergraduate’ level from 365 in 2020/21 to 1,965 in 2022/23. Over the same period, ‘other postgraduate’ enrolments on these courses increased from 300 to 1,020.

Mode of Study and Sex

Most students enrolled at NI HEIs were studying full-time, with more females than males enrolling.

Almost three-quarters (73%) of enrolments at NI HEIs were full-time. In comparison with 2021/22, full-time enrolments have increased by 7% (from 46,165 to 49,300) and part-time enrolments have decreased by 2% (from 18,510 to 18,215).

Females accounted for 57% of students enrolled at NI HEIs in 2022/23. A higher proportion of males (75%) than females (71%) were studying full-time. Over the past ten years, the female share of the student population at NI HEIs has stayed the same (57% in both 2013/14 and 2022/23).

Level of Study

The number of students on ‘other undergraduate’ and postgraduate courses increased over the most recent year, while those on first degree courses changed little.

Between 2021/22 and 2022/23, ‘other undergraduate’ enrolments increased by 15% (from 3,750 to 4,325) and postgraduate by 11% (from 20,085 to 22,385). Over the same period, first degree enrolments changed little (40,845 in 2021/22 compared with 40,810 in 2022/23).

Figure 6: The proportion of students enrolled on ‘Other Undergraduate’ and ‘Postgraduate’ courses is higher in older age groups

Figure 6: Enrolments at NI HEIs by age group, mode and level of study - 2022/23

Country of Domicile

Just over a quarter of students at NI HEIs were domiciled outside NI, with a record high of almost one-fifth of students coming from non-EU countries.

Of the 67,515 students enrolled at NI HEIs in 2022/23, 72% were from NI, 4% from GB, 4% from the Republic of Ireland, less than 1% from other EU countries and a record high of almost one-fifth (19%) from Non-EU countries.

HE Enrolments at campuses in NI by country of domicile - 2022/23. More details on the trends are included in the text directly below.

In 2022/23, students from 130 different countries throughout the world were enrolled at NI HEIs. The countries outside NI, GB and the RoI with the most students enrolled at NI campuses (not including those registered to Ulster University (UU) but based in Birmingham or London) were India (2,005), China (1,480) and Nigeria (670). For those registered to UU and based in Birmingham and London the most popular were Nigeria (2,250), India (1,315) and Pakistan (975).

Four-fifths of students at NI HEIs from non-EU countries and half of students from Other EU countries were enrolled on postgraduate courses, whereas 72% of students from NI, 68% of ROI students and 52% of GB students were enrolled on ‘first degree’ courses.

Figure 7: 72% of NI domiciled enrolments at NI HEIs were on ‘first degree’ courses

Enrolments at NI HEIs by domicile and level of study - 2022/23

Subject of Study

Almost a half of students at NI HEIs were enrolled on Broad STEM related subjects, including nearly a quarter on Narrow STEM related subjects.

In 2022/23, the most popular subject areas students were studying at NI HEIs were: ‘Business and management’, with 14,420 (21%) enrolments; ‘Subjects allied to medicine’, with 11,080 (16%) enrolments; and ‘Social sciences’, with 6,035 (9%) enrolments.

Females accounted for 84% of 2022/23 enrolments at NI HEIs in ‘Subjects allied to medicine’, 80% of those studying ‘Psychology’ and 74% of those studying ‘Education and teaching’. In contrast, males accounted for 76% of those studying ‘Engineering and technology’, 75% of ‘Computing’ enrolments and 67% of ‘Architecture, building and planning’ enrolments.

Figure 9: Proportion of students enrolled at NI HEIs in Broad and Narrow STEM subjects by sex – 2022/23

STEM Enrolments Male Female Total
Broad STEM 48% 47% 47%
Narrow STEM 34% 16% 24%

Institutional breakdown

Almost half of enrolments at NI HEIs were at Ulster University and over a third at Queen’s University.

Of all students enrolled at NI HEIs in 2022/23, almost half (48%) were enrolled at Ulster University, 38% at Queen’s University Belfast, 2% at Stranmillis University College, 1% at St Mary’s University College and 11% at the Open University.

Figure 10: Students enrolled at NI HEIS by institution and level of study – 2021/22 to 2022/23

Level of Study Academic Year Queen’s University Belfast Ulster University Stranmillis University College St Mary’s University College The Open University
First Degree 2021/2022 16,960 17,865 1,125 885 4,005
First Degree 2022/2023 16,875 18,190 1,090 835 3,815
Other Undergraduate 2021/2022 1,010 825 0 0 1,910
Other Undergraduate 2022/2023 1,100 825 45 0 2,350
Postgraduate 2021/2022 7,325 10,965 200 150 1,440
Postgraduate 2022/2023 7,620 13,070 255 170 1,270
Total 2021/2022 25,295 29,660 1,325 1,040 7,355
Total 2022/2023 25,600 32,085 1,390 1,005 7,435

5. Interactive Tables

Interactive tables detailing higher education enrolments complement this report. These interactive tables have been created for users who want to delve deeper into the findings. These align with the report, so users can explore each section e.g. Northern Ireland domiciled students enrolled at NI HEIs and enrolments at Northern Ireland HEIs. They also allow users to look at Northern Ireland domiciled students at NI HEIs in more detail by using the filter option. Users can also look in more detail at:

  • Level of study
  • Mode of study
  • Domicile
  • Sex
  • Age group
  • Location of study
  • Year of study
  • Institution (for NI HEIs)
  • Ulster University campus

These interactive tables are available to explore on the DfE Website.

6. Further Information

Publication Format and Interactive tables

This HTML publication and the Interactive Tables use a RAP (Reproducible Analytical Pipeline) Strategy to produce higher quality, more efficient and transparent analysis.

Data Quality and Methodology

Statistics and Research Branch (Tertiary Education)

Statistics and Research Branch (Tertiary Education) is responsible for the collection, quality assurance, analysis and publication of timely and accurate information derived from a wide range of statistical information returns supplied by the Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and Further Education (FE) colleges across Northern Ireland (NI) and the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), the latter focused on NI HEIs and NI domiciled students in attendance at any UK HEI. Information is disseminated through a number of key statistical publications, including: HEI enrolments; HEI qualifications; FE Sector activity; and Essential Skills enrolments and outcomes.

A detailed list of these publications is available from: Higher and Further Education and Training Statistics

Data Collection

The information presented in this statistical bulletin is based on data supplied by HESA, now part of Jisc, the Designated Data Body for HE in England. HESA collects information from all publicly funded universities throughout Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales and HE providers in England registered with the Office for Students (OfS) in the Approved (fee cap) or Approved categories. These are collectively called Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in the context of this bulletin. The HESA statistics presented in this bulletin relate to students at UK HEIs and, therefore, do not include HE enrolments at FE colleges in NI or GB, or at institutions in the Republic of Ireland (ROI).

New HESA Data Futures Collection System

The 2022/23 HESA Student Record was the first to be collected using a newly developed data submission platform and data model, delivered by the ‘Data Futures’ transformation programme. Although ultimately successful in delivering a comprehensive set of data on higher education students across the UK, submitting HE providers and HESA/Jisc experienced a greater number of challenges during the collection process than had been the case in recent years.

A comprehensive quality assessment has been undertaken on the dataset and this is detailed in HESA’S 2022/23 Student Data Quality Report. A detailed list of findings is available in HESA’s Data Quality and Insights resource, which is also accompanied by provider specific data notes.

Overall, the conclusions from the HESA quality assessment of 2022/23 student data suggest a picture of limited impact of quality issues at the level of the aggregated data used in the top level variables and trend data provided in this bulletin.

The most common type of quality issues identified in the 2022/23 HESA student data relate to increases in the proportions of unknown values appearing in particular data ‘fields’. HESA indicate that the quality issues can become more impactful in specific areas as one examines more disaggregated and detailed data, particularly at the level of some individual HE providers across the UK, but we are not aware of any significant impact on NI providers top level data.

Following a compliance check by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR), it has been confirmed that the accredited official statistics published by HESA for the 2022/23 student data continue to meet the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value as set out in the Code of Practice for Statistics.

Coverage

This statistical bulletin has been produced by the Department for the Economy (DfE) and presents information on HE enrolments of NI domiciled students at UK HEIs in the 2022/23 academic year, and of all students at NI HEIs in the same time period. The data covers all providers that submit student data to Jisc. For 2022/23, a revised student data collection (culminating from the Data Futures programme) forms the basis from which data has been drawn. Prior to 2022/23, data from two separate data collections was combined: the Student record and the Student Alternative record (previously known as the Alternative provider student record). An Alternative Provider is any provider of higher education courses: not in direct receipt of recurrent funding from UK funding bodies; not a Further Education college; and not registered as ‘approved (fee cap)’ on the OfS register. However, regulatory changes in England from 2019/20 meant that boundaries between the two collections became less clear cut and a decision was made to combine the two into one collection and to discontinue publishing separate AP figures.

Rounding Strategy

To prevent the identification of individuals, figures throughout the report are rounded to the nearest 5, with 0, 1, and 2 rounded to 0. Due to rounding, the sum of numbers in each row or column may not match the total shown. Percentages are calculated on unrounded data and are rounded to the nearest integer. This means percentages may not sum exactly to 100%. More information on the rounding strategy can be found in Annex C: Notes and Definitions.

Covid-19 Impact

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic was declared by the World Health Organisation in March 2020, just over halfway through the 2019/20 academic year. The 2020/21 HESA student data covered the first full academic year since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

HESA noted a large increase in UK enrolments (over 8%) between 2019/20 and 2020/21; however, it attributed this to a range of factors, not all of which were related to the pandemic. It noted that on the demographic level, the number of 18-year-olds in the UK started to rise in 2020 after years of steady decline, leading to an increase in the number of potential 18-year-old higher education applicants. In addition, the young higher education participation rate had been rising steadily across the UK, which led to an increased demand for HE places. Compounding this, summer 2020 saw a change in how A level grades were awarded in light of the pandemic. After the cancellation of A level exams in spring 2020, the move to centre assessed grades led to an increase in candidates meeting their offer conditions.

HESA also noted an increase in taught postgraduate enrolments in 2020/21. Uncertainty regarding employment prospects in the early months of the pandemic may have contributed to this increase.

At NI HEIs, a cap (known as the Maximum Student Number (MaSN)) is placed on the number of full time undergraduate students that can be enrolled. This cap was increased in 2020/21 to help accommodate some of the increase in candidates meeting their offer conditions.

Following the removal of restrictions and the return to pre-pandemic ‘normality’, HESA has stated that although COVID-19 may have continued to be a factor in the educational experience of some students during 2021/22, other events and policy changes were increasingly likely to have played an important role, as the acute phase of the pandemic receded.

Annex A: Data Quality and Uses of Statistics

Accredited Offical Statistics

Accredited Official Statistics are official statistics that have been independently reviewed by Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR) and confirmed to comply with the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics. Producers of accredited official statistics are legally required to ensure they maintain compliance with the Code. Accredited official statistics are called National Statistics in the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007.

These accredited official statistics were independently reviewed by OSR in December 2010 in the Assessment of Higher Education in Northern Ireland Statistics with accreditation confirmed in January 2012. They comply with the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice and should be labelled National Statistics (or ‘accredited official statistics’).

Our statistical practice is regulated by OSR. They set the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics that all producers of official statistics should adhere to. You are welcome to contact us directly with any comments about how we meet these standards by emailing Analytical Services. Alternatively, you can contact OSR by emailing or via the OSR website.

Data Quality

All information presented in this bulletin is based on data validated and quality assured by HEIs prior to submission to HESA. HEIs are given a set period of time to submit the information to HESA. Following submission, both HESA and DfE perform a series of validation checks to ensure that information is consistent both within and across returns. Trend analyses are used to monitor annual variations and emerging trends. Queries arising from validation checks are presented to HEIs for clarification and, if required, returns may be amended and/or re-submitted. Finally, prior to publication, the data are presented to HEIs for a final sign-off.

More information on the methods for collecting and analysing HEI data, the quality of HEI statistics, and links to the quality guidance used in managing the production of HEI statistics can be accessed via the link Quality of Higher Education Statistics.

Who will be interested in this bulletin?

The information presented in this statistical bulletin will be of interest to a wide variety of people. For example, the statistics within and those derived from this bulletin are currently used by: DfE policy officials in their role of assisting and advising the Minister for the Economy to discharge his or her duties; by the NI Assembly and its Committee for the Economy to scrutinise the HE sector; by other government departments such as DoF as a key indicator in the education domain of the NI Multiple Deprivation Measure (MDM); by prospective students to inform their choices around HE; by local businesses to quantify the supply of graduates in their business area; and by researchers and academics to try and understand the underlying trends in HE. Further details about the uses made of HE statistics can be found in the notes and definitions section.

Main Uses of HEI statistics

The main uses of these statistics are to monitor HE enrolments and the characteristics of students enrolling both from NI and to NI HEIs. This helps in assessing HEI performance, corporate monitoring, informing and monitoring related policy, and responding to parliamentary/assembly questions and ad hoc queries from the public.

DfE is responsible for the policy, strategic development and financing of the statutory HE sector. Analysis of data trends against key strategic priorities remains a crucial component of data development within DfE.

The bulletin and further analysis of the data provide an evidence base that is used in a number of DfE policies, strategies and reviews.

In addition, HEI statistics are used within other NI departments and their agencies. Some examples are: -

  • NISRA – as a key indicator in the Education Domain of the Northern Ireland Multiple Deprivation Measure (NI MDM).
  • Department of Education (DE) – teacher demand model
  • Invest NI – to quantify the supply of graduates for potential inward investment to NI

Around 50 HEI statistical enquiries per year are received by the Department from various sources. These include requests for further breakdowns of enrolments, qualifications and destinations data.

ANNEX B: Policy and Operational Context

There continues to be a lot of media interest in the HE sector and HE statistics. With changes in fee regimes throughout the UK, fluctuations in the strength of the economy and the impact of EU exit, the demand for HE is often in the spotlight. DfE is responsible for formulating policy and administering funding to support education, research and related activities in the Northern Ireland HE sector. This bulletin forms part of the evidence base used to shape and evaluate DfE strategies and policies. Some of the most recent examples are:

Draft Programme for Government (PfG) Framework 2024-2027

The work of the Department is shaped by the draft Programme for Government (2024-2027), which sets the strategic direction of travel for the work of the Executive, expressed in terms of transforming our public services, supporting businesses, and improving the lives of employees, families, and communities. The document identifies Good Jobs, Promoting Regional Balance, Raising Productivity and Reducing Carbon Emissions as the key objectives of a strong, competitive, regionally balanced economy. Higher education has a pivotal role in supporting this aspiration, especially with regard to increasing the skills levels of the Northern Ireland workforce and increasing the proportion of local graduates from local institutions in professional and management occupations, or indeed further study.

Maximum Student Number (MaSN)

Before higher education became a devolved matter, the UK Government introduced an annual cap on the number of students each UK HEI could enrol. Following devolution in 1998, the cap (known as the Maximum Student Number (MaSN)) was maintained in Northern Ireland and is still in use today.

The MaSN applies primarily to full-time home and EU domiciled undergraduates enrolled in Northern Ireland. It does not curtail the recruitment of part-time or postgraduate students (with the exception of PGCE students). Nor does it curtail the recruitment of GB or international (non-EU) students.

Queen’s University Belfast and Ulster University, both approved to deliver full-time undergraduate provision, receive an annual MaSN allocation from the Department. St Mary’s University College and Stranmillis University College are not subject to MaSN as the DE sets the numbers required for initial teacher training. The OU is also not subject to MaSN given its wholly part-time offering.

Part-Time and Postgraduate Student Loans

From the beginning of the 2017/18 academic year, DfE extended its student support package, with tuition fee loans being made available for part-time undergraduate and full-time distance learning study students, and postgraduate students studying certain courses.

Northern Ireland students studying part-time undergraduate (or full time distance learning) courses in Northern Ireland, England, Wales or Scotland could apply for a tuition fee loan of up to £3,472.50 for the 2021/22 academic year. Those starting Postgraduate Certificate, Postgraduate Diploma, or Taught or Research Master’s courses in Northern Ireland, England, Wales or Scotland could apply for a loan of up to £5,500 per course to help with fee costs. For both types of loans, the fees are paid direct to the university to cover tuition fees.

HEI Activity Elsewhere in the UK

Summary figures for the four UK administrations were published by HESA in their Higher Education Statistics 2022/23 on 8th August 2024.

HESA’s Higher Education Student Data 2022/23 open data release was published by HESA on 29th August 2024. This provides more detailed information about students in higher education across the UK.

ANNEX C: Notes and Definitions

NOTES

  1. The information presented in this statistical bulletin is based on data supplied by HESA, now part of Jisc, the Designated Data Body for HE in England. HESA collects information from all publicly funded universities throughout Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales and Higher Education (HE) providers in England registered with the Office for Students (OfS) in the Approved (fee cap) or Approved categories. These are collectively called Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in the context of this bulletin. The HESA data presented in this bulletin relate to students at UK HEIs and, therefore, do not include HE qualifications gained at FE colleges in NI or GB, the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) or at institutions in the Republic of Ireland. The Department for the Economy (DfE) also publishes information on HE enrolments gained at FE colleges in NI in its Further Education Sector Activity statistical bulletin.

  2. Information on enrolments on HE courses at NI and GB FE colleges, CAFRE and RoI institutions is available via a separate statistical fact sheet, which is published on the Department’s website: HE Statistical Fact Sheets.

  3. Further statistics on the Northern Ireland HE sector, including qualifications gained, graduate destinations and various higher education fact sheets can be downloaded from the Department’s website:Higher Education Statistics and Research.

  4. Change to data coverage - Since 2019/20, Ulster University has returned information for those undertaking the Objective Structured Clinical Exam (OSCE) of the Nursing and Midwifery (NMC) Test of Competence (ToC). The ToC is for overseas nurses and midwives seeking registration as a nurse and/or midwife in the UK and the NMC Competence Test Centre (CTC) at Magee campus of UU is one of five CTC test centres across the UK. This is a part-time. stand-alone, credit bearing course, which means that while students will receive credit for undertaking the module, no qualification will be awarded. This accounted for approximately 4,900 students at the Magee campus in 2022/23. From this academic year forward, data for these students have been excluded due to a reassessment of the coverage of the HESA Student Record for these students and will no longer be returned from 2023/24. Historical data in this bulletin have been updated to reflect this change, and so total student numbers for NI HEIs will differ from those shown in previous editions of the release.

  5. HESA releases a separate publication providing information on HE Student Enrolments and Qualifications obtained at HEIs for the whole of the UK. A notable difference in the HESA publication and those released by DfE is that, from 2014/15, HESA uses revised data returns for the time series figures, whereas DfE does not. Consequently, historical figures for the number of enrolments and qualifications at UK HEIs published by DfE may differ from those in HESA’s publications. Further information on this can be found in the ‘Notes’ section of HESA’s Student Statistics bulletin 2022/23.

  6. Change to recording practice - To avoid a duplication of foundation year figures across HE institutions and Further Education Colleges, Queen’s University Belfast and Stranmillis University College changed their return to HESA during 2019/20 and no longer report on foundation degrees that are offered as part of a validated collaborative arrangement with Further Education Colleges. Historical figures in this bulletin reflect this change.

  7. Allocation of OU students – The Open University’s administrative centre is based in the South East of England. However, enrolments registered at one of the OU’s national centres in Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland will contribute to the totals of those countries where statistics are shown by country of provider. Please note that all non-UK domicile OU students and those who study at postgraduate research level are registered to England.

  8. Subject coding - 2019/20 saw the introduction of a new subject coding system, the Higher Education Classification of Subjects (HECoS). This replaced the previous subject coding system, the Joint Academic Coding System (JACS) used in years prior to 2019/20. In addition to HECoS, a Common Aggregation Hierarchy (CAH) was introduced to provide a standardised hierarchical aggregation of HECoS codes suitable for the majority of users. The CAH was developed to provide standard groupings that could be applied to both HECoS and JACS allowing for consistent analysis across coding frames. It is important to remember though that these are two distinct coding frames.

CAH was subsequently updated from version 1.2 to version 1.3.4 in 2020/21, which has resulted in some minor changes to the categories. CAH v1.3.4 was introduced to increase the usefulness and intelligibility of detailed subject groupings, but at the highest level of aggregation it provides similar insights to CAH v1.2. For more information, please refer to HESA’s webpage on HECoS and CAH.

Where information on subject area is provided in this bulletin and associated interactive tables, it is based on CAH v1.3.4 level 1, comprising 21 groups; for the purposes of STEM analysis, Geography, earth and environmental studies has been split into natural sciences and social sciences.

  1. In 2020/21, there was a notable increase in the number of enrolments available to NI domiciled students at NI HEIs, there were two main reasons behind this increase; (i) at NI HEIs a cap (known as the Maximum Student Number (MaSN)) is placed on the number of full time undergraduate students that can be enrolled, this cap was increased in 2020 to help accommodate some of the increase in candidates meeting their offer conditions due to changes in how A level grades were awarded in light of the pandemic; and (ii) short upskilling courses were offered to those affected by the pandemic either through furlough, redundancy or those unable to gain employment in their field.

  2. Rounding Strategy – DfE conforms to the HESA rounding strategy. Due to the provisions of the Data Protection Act (2018) and the Human Rights Act (1998), HESA (and therefore DfE) implements a strategy, in published and released tabulations, designed to prevent the disclosure of personal information about any individual. This strategy involves rounding all numbers to the nearest 5, and suppressing percentages and averages based on small populations.

A full list of the rounding strategy includes:

  • 0, 1 and 2 are rounded to 0;
  • all other numbers are rounded to the nearest multiple of 5;
  • percentages based on fewer than 22.5 individuals are suppressed;
  • averages based on a small group of people (7 or fewer) are also suppressed;
  • percentages and averages are based on unrounded figures;
  • percentages are rounded to the nearest integer

Total figures are also subject to this rounding methodology; so the sum of numbers in each row or column may not match the total shown. Similarly, percentages may not sum to 100%.

DEFINITIONS

  1. Higher Education

For the purpose of HESA’s data collection, HE students for are those on courses for which the level of instruction is above that of Level 3 of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) National Qualifications Framework (NQF) (for example, courses at the level of Certificate of HE and above).

  1. Count of Students

The HESA Student Record contains information about individual enrolments, which, because a student can be enrolled on more than one programme of study, will exceed the number of students.

  1. Academic year

The academic year runs from 1st August to 31st July.

  1. First year students

First year students are based on the HESA standard registration population who commenced their instance in the reporting period relevant to the data collection year.

  1. Domicile

Domicile refers to a student’s permanent place of residence prior to enrolment on a course. Student enrolments recorded with domicile UK region unknown, Channel Islands and Isle of Man are included in the GB category for the purposes of this statistical bulletin. Those with unknown domicile are included in total figures, but not in separate breakdowns in this publication and associated tables. Student enrolments recorded with domicile UK region unknown, Channel Islands and Isle of Man are included in the GB category for the purposes of this statistical bulletin. Those with unknown domicile are included in total figures, but not in separate breakdowns in this publication and associated tables.

  1. Level of study

  1. Postgraduate programmes of study are those leading to higher degrees, diplomas and certificates (including Postgraduate Certificate of Education (PGCE) and professional qualifications) and usually require that entrants are already qualified to degree level (that is, already qualified at Level 6 of the QCA NQF). Higher degrees include doctorates, master’s degrees and higher bachelor’s degrees. Other postgraduate includes postgraduate diplomas, certificates and professional qualifications, PGCE at Level M, institutional postgraduate credits and no formal postgraduate qualifications.

  2. First degrees include: first degrees with or without eligibility to register to practice with a health or social care or veterinary statutory regulatory body; first degrees with Qualified Teacher Status (QTS)/registration with a General Teaching Council (GTC); enhanced first degrees; first degrees obtained concurrently with a diploma; and intercalated first degrees.

  3. ‘Other undergraduate’ includes qualification aims equivalent to and below first degree level, including, but not limited to, Professional Graduate Certificate in Education (PgCE), foundation degrees, diplomas in higher education, Higher National Diploma (HND), Higher National Certificate (HNC), Diploma of Higher Education (DipHE), Certificate of Higher Education (CertHE), foundation courses at higher education level, National Vocational Qualification (NVQ)/Scottish Vocational Qualification (SVQ) at NQF levels 4 and 5, post-degree diplomas and certificates at undergraduate level, professional qualifications at undergraduate level, other undergraduate diplomas and certificates including pre- and post-registration health and social care and veterinary courses, other formal higher education qualifications of less than degree standard, provider undergraduate credit and non-formal undergraduate qualifications.

  1. Mode of study

  1. Full-time covers students studying for at least 24 weeks, those on sandwich courses, and those on a study-related year out of their higher education provider. Full-time students are expected to undertake at least an average of 21 hours of study, tuition or work experience per week.

  2. Part-time covers students who study fewer than 21 hours per week on average. Also covers students studying at full intensity but for less than 24 weeks, or for any other reason do not meet the standard definition of full-time. As of 2022/23, detail relating to students on sandwich courses is no longer captured within mode of study, and so there may be some part-time students who are on sandwich courses.

  1. Sex identifier

From 2022/23, the sex identifier (SEXID) field includes the new categories ‘information refused’ and ‘not available’, as well as ‘female’, ‘male’ and ‘other’. In addition, the published coding guidance on use of the ‘other’ SEXID category has been clarified; this code should only be used only for a third sex that is legally recognised by another country. However, the data suggests that the categories of ‘other’, ‘information refused’ and ‘not available’ have often not been applied correctly or consistently in the data submissions from HE providers in the 2022/23 student data collection. For this reason, and due to small numbers and issues of disclosure, students of ‘other’ sex, ‘information refused’ and ‘not available’ are included in total figures, but not in separate breakdowns in this publication and associated tables.

  1. Age

Age is as at 31st August within the relevant academic year.

  1. STEM – Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths Qualifications

The STEM groupings used in this bulletin are based on the approach developed by HESA to categorise subjects into science/non-science subjects. Their science grouping is an aggregation of relevant CAH v1.3.4 level 1 subject codes (derived from HECoS), with the exception of CAH26 (Geography, earth and environmental studies), which has been split into natural sciences and social sciences. The natural science element is categorised into the science grouping and the social sciences element into the non-science grouping.

Narrow STEM includes the following subject areas: Biological and sport sciences; Psychology; Physical sciences; Mathematical sciences; Engineering and technology; Computing; and Geography, earth and environmental studies (natural sciences).

Broad STEM includes all those in Narrow STEM along with the following: Medicine and dentistry; Subjects allied to medicine; Veterinary sciences; Agriculture, food and related studies; and Architecture, building and planning.

  1. Multiple Deprivation Measure (MDM)

The analysis presented in section 3- Multiple Deprivation Measure utilises five groups (quintiles) of Super Output Areas (SOAs) across NI. These five groups are determined based on relative level of deprivation using the NI Multiple Deprivation Measure (NI MDM) 2017.

SOAs ranked 1 to 178 form the most deprived quintiles relative to all other SOAs. Those ranked 713 to 890 are the most affluent relative to all other SOAs. SOA is determined using the valid postcode provided on the enrolment record.

NI MDM 2017 is a weighted combination of the seven domains of deprivation. The Income and Employment Deprivation domains account for nearly 50% of the multiple deprivation measure. The Health and Disability Domain, and Education, Skills and Training Deprivation Domain combined account for a further 30%, and the remainder is made up of the Access to Services, Living Environment and Crime and Disorder Domains.

For further details on deprivation measurement in NI please follow this link: NI MDM 2017.

Contact Details

Further details, and feedback, on any of the statistics in this statistical bulletin can be obtained from:

Michael MacNeill – Michael.MacNeill@economy-ni.gov.uk (Tel: 028 90 257897)

Kerry McColgan – Kerry.McColgan@economy-ni.gov.uk (Tel: 028 90 257753)

Eamonn Rigney – Eamonn.Rigney@economy-ni.gov.uk (Tel: 028 90 257825)

For media enquiries contact the Department for the Economy’s Press Office

Tel: (028) 9052 9604, Email: pressoffice@economy-ni.gov.uk

This statistical bulletin and others published by Statistics and Research Branch (Tertiary Education) are available to download free from the Higher Education Statistics and Research website.

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© Crown copyright 2025 The Northern Ireland Multiple Deprivation Measure (NIMDM) and other NI geographical indicators are based ON Crown Copyright and are reproduced with the permission of Land and Property Services under delegated authority from the Keeper of Public Records, © Crown copyright and database rights NIMA Licence MOU577.3 (2025).