Dear Yaseen Ali,

Freedom of Information request reference K/20/190

Thank you for your Freedom of Information (FOI) request dated 13 May 2020.
Your request has been allocated the reference number K/20/190. Please
include this number in all further correspondence related to your enquiry.

Please note that in light of the ongoing coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic,
the University of Leeds is, like other organisations around the world,
experiencing disruption to services. We consider it likely that there will
be some short- to medium-term impact on our ability to respond to FOI
requests, which may result in FOI responses taking longer than 20-working
days . We will endeavour to keep applicants informed at all times, and
appreciate your understanding. More information on how the University of
Leeds is responding to Covid-19 is available [1]on our dedicated webpages.

If you have any questions about your request, please contact us at
[2][University of Leeds request email]

Yours sincerely

Chloe Wilkins

Freedom of Information Officer

Secretariat

University of Leeds

show quoted sections

Dear Yaseen Ali, 

Freedom of Information Response (Our Ref: K/20/190)

Thank you for your Freedom of Information (FOI) request dated 13 May 2020,
reference K/20/190.

Your request read:

“I  would like to know the following statistics , the number of
applications received to your university for undergraduate degree studies
for the years 2017,2018,2019 and 2020. I would also like to know the
number of total offers for undergraduate degree places made for the years
of 2017,2018 ,2019 and 2020 . I would like to know the average (mean)
amount of money spent by the university on each student enrolled in an
undergraduate degree , please separate this per department (e.g. for
social sciences the university spent x amount on each student )and please
provide these figures for the years 2017,2018,2019 and 2020. , I would
like to know what were the top 3 most common reasons why student
applications for undergraduate courses were rejected , I would like to
know the total number of undergraduate degree places available as an
estimate/ a range for the years 2015,2016,2017,2018,2019 and 2020. I would
finally like to know the total undergraduate dropout rate as a percentage
of total undergraduate students for the years 2017,2018,2019 and 2020 ?”

The University of Leeds holds some of this information. For your
convenience we have numbered your questions and responded to each in turn
below.

 1. The number of applications received to your university for
undergraduate degree studies for the years 2017,2018,2019 and 2020
 2. I would also like to know the number of total offers for undergraduate
degree places made for the years of 2017,2018 ,2019 and 2020

The University of Leeds holds some information relevant to these
questions, which we address together. The 2020 entry cycle is still in
progress and as such we are not able to provide information at this stage.

+------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|Year |Applications |Offers |
|------------+--------------------------------------------+--------------|
|2017 |60,294                                      |37,450 |
|------------+--------------------------------------------+--------------|
|2018 |63,247                    |39,723 |
|------------+--------------------------------------------+--------------|
|2019 |62,998                    |40,093 |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------+

 3. I would like to know the average (mean) amount of money spent by the
university on each student enrolled in an undergraduate degree ,
please separate this per department (e.g. for social sciences the
university spent x amount on each student )and please provide these
figures for the years 2017,2018,2019 and 2020.

The University of Leeds does not hold this information and we have no
means of collating it in the terms you have set out. However, we publish
information on [1]our income and how we spend it, which you may find
helpful. 

 4. I would like to know what were the top 3 most common reasons why
student applications for undergraduate courses were rejected

All selection decisions are made on the basis of merit, which may include
academic and non-academic criteria for admission to the relevant programme
of study. All applications are evaluated against the relevant
[2]Admissions Policy.

 5. I would like to know the total number of undergraduate degree places
available as an estimate/ a range for the years
2015,2016,2017,2018,2019 and 2020.

We have interpreted this element of your request to relate to first year
places only. Please find the information we hold in the table below. As
noted above, the 2020 entry cycle is still in progress and as such we do
not yet hold the requested information for 2020.

+------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|Year |First year places available |
|--------------------------------+---------------------------------------|
|2015 |7264 |
|--------------------------------+---------------------------------------|
|2016 |7445 |
|--------------------------------+---------------------------------------|
|2017 |8039 |
|--------------------------------+---------------------------------------|
|2018 |8301 |
|--------------------------------+---------------------------------------|
|2019 |7875 |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------+

 6. I would finally like to know the total undergraduate dropout rate as a
percentage of total undergraduate students for the years
2017,2018,2019 and 2020 ?

We calculate dropout rate as the percentage of new undergraduate degree
students registered on 1 December in each calendar year who were not
actively studying 12 months later. (e.g. students who are studying on 1
December 2019 but not studying on 1 December 2020. This is the standard
methodology used for all official purposes, e.g. Higher Education
Statistics Agency (HESA), Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) and Access
and Participation Plan (APP):

+---------------------------------------------------------------+
|Year |Withdrawals as % of total population |
|------------------------+--------------------------------------|
|2017 |6.7% |
|------------------------+--------------------------------------|
|2018 |6.4% |
|------------------------+--------------------------------------|
|2019 |6.3% |
+---------------------------------------------------------------+

The 2019-20 academic year is still in progress. As outlined above, we will
not hold information in relation to the 2020 dropout rate until after 1 ^
December 2020.

We hope this information is helpful. If you have any questions about this
email, however, please do not hesitate to contact us on [3][University of Leeds request email]

If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to your
request and wish to make a complaint or request a review of our decision,
you can request an Internal Review. Requests for Internal Review should be
made in writing using the following contact information:

Post:             Mr D Wardle

Deputy Secretary

The University of Leeds

Leeds

LS2 9JT

Email:           [4][University of Leeds request email]

Requests for Internal Review should be submitted within 40 working days of
receiving the University’s response to your request. Further information
about how the University manages Freedom of Information requests and about
our complaints procedure is also available on our website
(www.leeds.ac.uk).

If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you have
the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a
decision.  Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have
exhausted the review/complaints procedure provided by the University.  The
Information Commissioner can be contacted at:  Information Commissioner’s
Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF.

Kind regards

Chloe Wilkins

Freedom of Information Officer

Secretariat

University of Leeds

References

Visible links
1. http://www.leeds.ac.uk/info/5000/about/1...
2. https://ses.leeds.ac.uk/info/22149/a-z_o...
3. mailto:[University of Leeds request email]
4. mailto:[University of Leeds request email]