College “cold spots” are developing in some parts of the country, new data analysis suggests, and in certain regions courses in some subjects are no longer available to students.
The new data tool, published on Tuesday by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (Hesa), showed a sharp decline in the number of students taking French and other language courses in recent years.
But courses in other subjects, such as artificial intelligence, showed a rapid increase during the same period.
Universities have cut courses with low enrollment levels and the sector faces growing financial challenges, while the government has announced annual increases in tuition fees to help universities tackle shortfalls.
Data published by Hesa shows that the number of full-time students on French studies courses had decreased from 9,700 in the 2012/13 academic year to 3,700 in 2023/2024.
The number of people taking language and regional studies courses also decreased during that period, from 125,900 to 80,100.
The number of full-time students taking German and Scandinavian courses was 1,400 in 2023/24, up from 3,900 in 2012/13.
But studies in artificial intelligence have soared over that 12-year period, with 1,800 full-time students in 2012/13 falling to just 900 the following year, but since rising to 9,100 in 2023/24.
Universities facing financial shortfalls have cut courses and staff positions in majors with low student numbers.
In November, students and teachers protested the University of Nottingham’s decision to suspend its modern languages and music courses, with no new students enrolling beyond 2026.
BBC News contacted the university for an update, but at the time a spokesperson said the courses were “unsustainable”, many had fewer than 10 students enrolled and that a final decision had not yet been made.
They previously said current students on courses at risk of closure would be supported to complete their studies.
Emma Walkers, modern languages course leader at Bilborough Sixth Form College in Nottingham, said there would be nowhere locally for her students to study languages at university if the cuts went ahead.
Releasing its new data tool, Hesa said the latest figures suggested French degree courses were no longer available to study in some locations, with student numbers now concentrated in London, Oxford, Bristol and Bath.
But with an increasing number of students wanting to live at home and commute to university to limit the cost of their studies, Emma says some of her students are being left with nowhere to go.
“Often if a student moves out of Nottingham they will end up moving to a more expensive city,” he said.
“If you come from a family that’s not particularly well-off, trying to go to London, Bath or Bristol is a huge amount of money to try to find.”
He said the decline in student numbers on French and other language courses suggests the languages are “simply not valued at all”.
Catherine Richards, principal of East Norfolk Sixth Form College, which is in another area with relatively low student enrollment on language courses, believes the problem starts long before college.
“The challenge to get places in higher education begins in primary school and the encouragement to study languages,” he says.
She says schools in her region offer fewer languages at GCSE, leading to fewer pupils taking them at A-levels and then studying them at university.
In German, it says entry levels for courses in schools and universities across the county are so low “that it is no longer a viable language”.
It’s a “shame” because of the “great teachers” around the county, he added.
Professor René Koglbauer, former language teacher and chairman of the board of directors of the Association for Language Learning (ALL), echoes that sentiment.
It says there are concerns that in regions without university-level language provision, sixth form schools and colleges may also stop offering A-level language courses.
“If you then leave it at A level, ultimately students may decide: ‘Well, if I can’t progress beyond GCSE, I’m not going to take that subject,'” he says.
“You can see the downward spiral.”
Many universities now offer “ab initio” undergraduate courses in languages, meaning you can start as a complete beginner, something Professor Koglbauer says has boosted uptake.
These intensive programs, along with joint honors options and the introduction of non-European languages such as Arabic and Mandarin, are part of the strategy to keep language learning popular among university students.
But to address regional “cold spots,” Professor Koglbauer says universities may need to approach the problem differently.
He says the sector may “need to think more about working collaboratively and actually pooling resources” to reach students.
