The coronavirus pandemic has inspired a new generation of students to become nurses, with a third more applying to study the subject at university than last year.
Figures show that applications to enroll in nursing degrees have reached more than 60,000. This figure represents a rebound after years of decline following the removal of government support for tuition fees and living costs.
Mike Adams, a director of the Royal College of Nursing, said the increase was still insufficient to fill tens of thousands of NHS nursing vacancies. He said that full-tuition should be provided by the country to make sure no student has to leave because of financial pressure.
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Nursing is especially popular among mature students, where there was a 39% rise in applications. But there were increases in applications across all age groups in the UK, with a record 16,560 applications from 18-year-old school leavers, an increase of 27%.
The rise in nursing applications is part of an overall increase in applications to start undergraduate courses in the UK from September, according to figures from Ucas, the university admissions service.
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Overall applications rose by 8% to reach a record 616,360 before the deadline for universities to consider applications equally. Last year 161,000 applications were received after the initial deadline.
There was strong demand from mature applicants aged 21 and over, with numbers rising by 24%, reflecting a trend identified by Ucas towards older age groups opting for further education during periods of the economic slowdown.
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