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The number of school-leavers?planning to study full-time at university has dropped to just over half, with almost two in five now saying they believe they can have a good career without a degree, according to new polling.?

A quarter of A-level students plan on undertaking an apprenticeship instead of?going into higher education, the by?Prospects at Jisc?found,?up from 15 per cent?in 2022.

The polling, released ahead of A-level results day?on14 August, found that the majority (52 per cent) of students?still hope to go to university ¨C but this was down from 59 per cent in 2022.

Thirty-nine per cent of students say they believe they can have a good career without going to university, compared?with 32 per cent in 2022.

Prospects said the growing confidence in vocational and work-based learning reflects a shift towards valuing practical experience, financial independence and job readiness.

Previous research has warned that the high costs of higher education might put young people off. But the new survey, based on the responses of more than 4,000 students and graduates, found that this was becoming less of a concern.

The proportion worried about the cost of university fell from 51 per cent in 2024 to 38 per cent this year.

Instead, respondents were more motivated by the immediate financial benefits of other routes ¨C with more than half saying they wanted to start earning money straight away.

The biggest pull factor for attending university was passion for a subject, which influenced 71 per cent of respondents. But financial motivation was still a big reason as well ¨C 35 per cent say the higher earning potential of a degree was most important.

Students are making ¡°more informed and independent choices¡± about their futures, said Chris Rea, early careers expert at Prospects.

¡°Young people are increasingly open to diverse paths. They no longer view university as the only, or even the best, route to career success.

¡°Yet it¡¯s a competitive and changing jobs market and university offers valuable opportunities to develop potential and stand out. It¡¯s a particularly useful option for those who are less certain about what they¡¯d like to do, and those whose goals align with higher education.¡±

The survey also found that artificial intelligence is playing an ever more important role in how A-level students think about their future careers ¨C 17 per cent had actively sought careers advice from AI tools?such as ChatGPT.

And 9 per cent say they had changed their career plans as a result.

patrick.jack@timeshighereducation.com