Rise in the number of students at Artevelde UAS
10/11/2023
The number of enrolments of UAS students is on the rise: this academic year, all Flemish universities of applied sciences combined welcome 148,349 students, an increase of over 3.5 %. This appears from the annual October count of the Flemish Council of University Colleges. The number of students at Artevelde UAS has increased even more, with 5.3 % more students than last academic year.
This academic year, Artevelde UAS can welcome more than 15,000 students, spread across all bachelor and associate degrees and all advanced programmes.
The new bachelor of Applied Psychology, unique in East Flanders, has started the academic year with 629 first-year students (of which 324 students enrol for the first time in higher education). The need for well-trained psychological consultants is high and that is what this programme, with more than 600 hours of internship, answers to. 'Mental health is a vivid topic among youths, who say they want to act themselves', says programme head, Veerle De Meyere.
The Bachelor of Secondary Education, the second largest in Flanders, tackles a social problem, being the teacher shortage. Even though it remains a challenge to attract new first-time students, the large number of transfer students is remarkable. An increasing number of professionals who want to reorient their career, find the way to the UAS, as appears from the figures of the Flemish Council of University Colleges.
Associate degrees and international programmes continue to grow
Additionally, the enrolment figures of the associate degrees are prominent. These went up with 15 %, what means that Artevelde UAS surpasses the Flemish trend. This increase emphasises the importance of correct funding of all programmes, and not in the least the associate degrees. These often train student who need specific care or guidance.
The increase in our market share proves that Artevelde UAS is a strong and relevant player
Finally, all international programmes combined welcome around 1,000 students. That makes Artevelde UAS second in Flanders. 'We have a profound and diverse recruitment strategy to thank for this', says International Recruitment Coordinator Iris Postma. 'We also offer some unique programmes: the English Bachelor of International Graphic and Digital Media, for instance, is the only one in Europe.'
Strong and relevant player
'Of course we are happy about the rise in the number of students', says our President, Tomas Legrand. 'The increase in our market share proves that Artevelde UAS is a strong and relevant player in the higher education landscape. Yet, there is a downside too: we are still concerned about the structural underfunding of the UAS means.'