The pie charts illustrate the reasons why students in the United Kingdom chose a college or university in over four decades.
Overall, academic factors such as suitable degree courses and quality teaching became more important over the period, while personal or social factors like being close to home and good sports facilities declined in significance.
In 1987, the largest proportion of students (35%) selected their college based on suitable degree courses. Quality of resources was the second most popular reason at 21%, followed by proximity to parental home at 20%. Meanwhile, 15% valued good teaching, and only 9% considered sports and social activities as a key factor.
By 2007, the proportion of students who prioritized suitable degree courses increased slightly to 37%. The importance of teaching quality rose considerably to 22%, whereas those who chose universities for their quality of resources dropped marginally to 17%. However, the share of students preferring to stay close to home decreased sharply to 10%, and those attracted by social and sporting facilities fell to just 6%.
