The line graph and bar chart illustrate the number of undergraduates and the government expenditure on each student from 1991 to 2001 in the UK, whereas the pie chart shows the proportion of students who came from different family economic backgrounds in 1991.
Overall, the highest percentage of students in the UK was from families with middle incomes, while the least belonged to low earners. Moreover, the total number of students witnessed an increase over the period, whereas the opposite trend was true for government spending.
Looking at the graphs in more detail, in 1991, about 60% of students at universities in the UK came from families with average economic backgrounds, which was twice that of students from high earners. The contribution of students living in families with low incomes was just under 10%.
With regard to the decade from 1991 to 2001, starting at just over 1 million, the total number of undergraduates in the UK experienced a significant rise of about 500,000 before growing minimally to around 1.6 million in 1997. Despite a noticeable increase over the next 2 years, this figure dropped slightly and stood at about 2 million at the end of the time surveyed. In contrast, the government spending on each student witnessed a dramatic reduction from over 6,500 to about 4,800 between 1991 to 1996 before levelling off in the remaining years.