White British students made up less than half of enrollment at nearly one in five UK universities in 2024-25, according to higher education data reviewed by The Telegraph.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
White British students accounted for less than half of enrollment at 27 universities across the United Kingdom during the 2024-25 academic year, according to official higher education figures analyzed and reported by The Telegraph.
The newspaper reported Wednesday that white students are now a minority at nearly one in five of the UK’s 147 universities. A decade earlier, the same was true at 13 institutions, according to the analysis.
The findings show the largest demographic differences at several universities where white students represented fewer than one-quarter of the student body. Aston University had the lowest reported share, with white students accounting for 23% of enrollment. The University of Bradford followed at 26%, while Brunel University London and SOAS University of London each recorded 27%.
The Telegraph also found that white students were underrepresented compared with their share of the national population at 80 British universities. Among the Russell Group, which includes 24 leading research universities, white students were underrepresented at 15 institutions.
The analysis is likely to add to continuing debate in Britain over race-based policies in higher education, including scholarships and bursaries limited to applicants from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds.
According to The Telegraph, at least 10 universities where white students now make up less than half of enrollment still offer scholarships, bursaries or other financial assistance reserved for BAME applicants. Some programs provide as much as £18,000, or about $24,000, per year.
Eric Kaufmann, a politics professor at the University of Buckingham and a critic of university diversity policies, told the newspaper that race-based scholarship programs should end.
“There is no reason to maintain BAME scholarships, which represent racial discrimination, pure and simple,” Kaufmann said.
The Equality Act 2010 permits universities, employers and public bodies to use “positive action” policies intended to address disadvantage or underrepresentation among protected groups. Supporters say such measures expand educational access for communities that have historically faced barriers. Critics argue that some institutions have relied on the law to support programs that exclude white applicants.
Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK, has criticized the government’s approach, accusing it of advancing what he called “deep anti-white racism.” He has also said he would repeal the Equality Act, arguing that it has produced a “two-tier state against white people” and embedded “anti-whiteness” in public life.
The Telegraph’s findings point to a significant shift in student demographics across British higher education, particularly at urban institutions and within parts of the country’s elite research university sector. The report also places renewed attention on whether race-specific support programs should continue at universities where white students no longer form a majority.
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