Record numbers get student places

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A record 316,594 A-level students had university places confirmed on the day the A-level results were published, applications service Ucas has said.

Some 2,807 of these were placed through Clearing - the system by which unfilled places are allocated. And by 1600 BST, 548,215 vacancy searches had been made.

By the same time there were 37,169 university places still unallocated.

At the peak, some 70 students were logging on to the Ucas website every second to track their applications.

There are still over 30,000 places available with unmatched applicants Bill RammellHigher Education Minister

England's Higher Education Minister Bill Rammell said the record number of placements was "clearly testament to the improved student finance package".

He highlighted the introduction of non-repayable grants and the fact that students do not have to repay their tuition fee loans until they are earning.

"It is clear that students still understand the value of higher education," he added.

"However, we must remember that the hard work does not stop here. There are still over 30,000 places available with unmatched applicants."

He also paid tribute to the efforts of those answering the phones at individual universities and Ucas.

'Calls flood in'

The Ucas helpline had answered 12,301 calls by Thursday afternoon, with the government exam results helpline having received 1,950 calls.

Students who do not have an offer or who have not achieved the necessary grades to take up their offer, but still want to go to university use the Clearing process.

They are required to seek out possible courses and contact universities directly.

When a suitable place is found, the university confirms they will offer the applicant a place and asks for a Clearing passport to be sent.

The applicant then sends this to the university who then confirms the place with Ucas.

The top five sought after courses were law, economics, psychology, business management and history.