Top universities are scrambling to find enough accommodation for thousands of extra students, after record numbers netted the high grades they needed to clinch their offers last week. Some students are being offered halls in other cities or shared rooms, as institutions buy up spare private accommodation.
Students were celebrating on Tuesday as nearly 45% of A-level entries across the UK were awarded an A or A*, despite more than a year of disruption and school closures. But some of the most selective institutions are worried that with only weeks to go until students start arriving, they don’t have enough bedrooms, teaching space, staff or specialist equipment to cope with all their unplanned extra students.
With many leading institutions turning down all “near-miss” candidates, they say they have also lost the flexibility to let in poorer students who have dropped a grade but shown potential.
A spokesperson for Bristol University, a member of the elite Russell Group, said in response to high demand for places in student halls they are introducing options “to ensure as many…
