1,000 PGT students accidentally enrolled

The University of Glasgow has reportedly enrolled an unprecedented amount of extra Postgraduate Taught Degree (PGT) students – approximately 1000 more than the previous year.

The total population of PGT students has increased by 20%.

The accidental extra students were unaccounted for due to the University wrongly predicting the amount of students who would enrol.

300 of the enrolments are in the Adam Smith Business School, and another 200 are in the School of Engineering. Approximately 50% of the new enrolments are international students.

To accommodate the unexpectedly high number of PGT enrolments, some classes for the College of Social Sciences were held in the Hilton Grosvenor hotel and the Kelvingrove Art Gallery.

President of the Students’ Representative Council (SRC) said: “It’s ridiculous that the University has accepted 20% more PGT students this year, considering we are so tight for space. The campus is at capacity, we had students being taught in the Hilton Hotel in their first week of term which is not acceptable. The University has a responsibility to make sure these students have sufficient learning, teaching and study space.

“We will be working with the University to ensure money brought in by student fees is pumped back into the student experience, whether that is into study space or support and that their experience will be closely monitored and evaluated.”

The University of Glasgow Space Management and Timetabling Services are currently seeking additional space for the PGT students across campus.

A spokesperson for the University said: “There is always a difference between the number of students we expect to admit, based on previous trends, and the actual enrolment figure. This year has seen an exceptionally high number of applications, up from around 25,000 to 30,000 and a very high uptake of offers – which in itself is a reflection of how highly regarded the University of Glasgow is. We are working hard to provide the best possible facilities for all of our students, and this includes identifying additional capacity within both our existing space and local alternatives. The Hilton Hotel was used by one class in the first week of teaching whilst changes to the timetable and room allocations were being finalised.

“We are investing resources to increase study space on campus and doing all that we can to ensure the needs of our students are catered for. Actions to secure additional capacity will continue over the next two years as we count down to the completion of the Learning and Teaching Hub, now under construction on University Avenue. This will provide substantially more teaching and learning spaces for students. Additional buildings, with state of the art laboratories and research facilities, will be added on the former site of the Western Infirmary over the next ten years.”

Last year, student numbers at the University of Glasgow’s Dumfries campus trebled.

17/10/2017 Article changed to reflect that the College of Social Sciences is not a School.