TAKE THE CONCRETE SEX SURVEY ONLINE ... Log on to www.surveymonkey.com/s/ concretelovesurvey today to take part in this year's -~ saucy survey. FEATURES PAGE 14
ISSUE 238
e
HEALTHY DESSERTS? ~ ~~a.·s,~ DON'T BOTHER. Why the low-fat diet version just won't do.
THE 2010 CONCRETE HOUSING GUIDE Get advice about Norwich neighbourhoods, housemates and more.
I»
TUESDAY 26th JANUARY 2010
e
www.concrete-online.co.uk
e
UEA'S INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER
e
FREE
REJECT APPLICANTS AT RECORD LEVEL Record numbers of university applicants expected to be rejected in the upcoming academic year. Thousands of students rejected last year swell application numbers with a 30% increase at UEA.
Adam Plom Statistics have revealed that UK universities could reject record numbers of applicants this year due to the Government's admissions cap and a 12% increase in full-time applicants. Tlie 10,000 extra places offered last year, subsidised by the government, have been withdrawn this year as part of universities funding cuts. Numbers of applicants is also thought to have swelled by many of the thousands of stude[lts who were rejected last year. The cap is maintained despite the government target to increase the number of students at universities, as well as numerous universities exceeding last year's cap .
Government threat of fines will sanction universities to keep within the specified cap and are believed to be on a per-additional-student basis. UCAS stats show that in 2009 a record number of 477,277 students took places at Britain's universities, a 5.6% increase on the 2008 level. Fllrther still, in 2009 139,260 students missed out on a university place . This figure is expected to hit around the 200,000 mark for 2010/11. Several Vice-Chancellors have spoken out against the system claiming that universities do not see overcrowding as a problem and would be happy to expand their intake of students. However, for this to happen eytra funding would be required from the • Government. While UEA has an
above-average class size, it has showed no signs of increased overcrowding despite the influx of new students in 2009, and has in fact decreased slightly. However, Annie Ogden, UEA Press Officer, said that UEA itself has received 30% more applications than last year which "could be attributed to a number of factors, not least our continuing success in student satisfaction surveys." UCAS Chief Executive, Virginia lsaac revealed in November that this year's interest in university places has been 'unprecedented', reporting a 15% increase in applications for 2010. However, as this figure was revealed in November it is expected to have risen dramatically, particularly just before the UCAS deadline on the 15th January.
Natasha Barnes, the UUEAS' Communication Officer said : "The Government's target of increasing University participation to 50% can only work with financial backing. The Government must provide the necessary resources to University's so this target can be met. If cuts are made, there will be consequences; there will be · qualified students who, despite having been encouraged by this government to apply to university, will miss out." The University and College Union believe that the Governmen(s decision could be catastrophic, stating that thousands of talented students may miss out on a university places and even struggle to find employment.
SIMON ARMITAGE SET TO TALK AT UEA LITERARY FESTIVAL
UNION DELETES KORFBALL PAGES IN WEBSITE SERVER UPDATE Nick Church UEA Korfball society's club website came across an unexpected shock after the launch of the Union's new website two weeks ago. Six years worth of match results, player statistics, photographs and other records stored on the website - hosted by the old Union website
server - were deleted without warning as the Union website's server changed. The problem was found by th!! society's Publicity Officer when trying to update tournament records after returning from the holidays. Ellie Nash, the Korfball Society's President, said how the loss came as disappointment as "a lot
of effort was put into the website" rather than through Facebook, increasingly more common amongst clubs and societies. She continued by saying how the society is very active, competing in around five tournaments and leagues a year, where post-tournament reports are posted on their website. "[The Union] didn't really communicate with
anyone [about the website] beforehanQ.", Ms. Nash noted. She said without the Union hosting the website, it will cost more, "be ten-times more difficult to maintain, and hard to pass on to the next publicity officer in the committee." While some of the records have been backed up most are lost, forcing the club to use Facebook as a means of
communicating to members. After alerting the Union about the faulty website, Communications Officer, Natasha Barnes, admitted a lack of communication on the Union's behalf and apologised for the loss: "I can only apologise for what has happened. I know how much Korfball used their site, and in trying to improve the Union's website we seem
to have overlooked theirs. We are doing all we can to find a solution to this problem, and to