16 UNITE STUDENTS | APPLICANT INDEX SURVEY | 2022 Just over half of applicants (55%) agree they will find it easy to take care of themselves while at university. Applicants are generally confident about their ability to cook a meal (78%) and do laundry (75%), but less confident about paying utility bills (44%) and dealing with plumbing, electric or heating issues (30%). Many applicants would have liked to be able to learn more about university services before they applied to university: 41% would have liked more information about student accommodation and about careers and employability, and 35% would have liked to learn more about student support services. LGB+ students and those with a disability were more likely to say that wanted to learn more about student support services. Those who chose to live in university halls were more likely to say that they would have liked more information about student accommodation. There was no clear consensus on the best method for universities to convey this information, but also little difference in preference between different demographic groups. This suggests that a mixed-channel approach would be most successful in reaching the widest range of students, along with targeted messaging to relevant groups. Most applicants believe their chosen university can meet their needs, with only 6% disagreeing. However these rates of disagreement are higher among international applicants (15%) care experienced applicants (16%). Only 55% of applicants agreed it was easy to find out how their chosen university would meet their needs. Levels of strong agreement are higher among care experienced applicants, and those with ADHD or autism spectrum disorder, but levels of disagreement are also higher among these groups. This suggests that targeted messages are landing well with some applicants from these groups but are not reaching all of them. TOPICAL ISSUES Independence University Services Figure 12 : Responses to the question “If you were asked to do the following tomorrow, how confident are you that you would be able to do them?” Figure 13 : How applicants would have liked to learn more about university services before applying. While 29% want their parents to be involved in their day-to-day life when they are at university, this level of involvement may be driven by parents themselves - 43% of applicants believe that their parents will want to be involved in their day-to-day lives. This section draws on wider survey questions to provide a brief analysis of topical issues. Washing your laundry Paying a utility bill Dealing with plumbing/ heating, etc Cooking a meal 0 100 80 50 20 90 60 30 70 40 10 ■ Confident ■ Neither confident nor unconfident ■ Unconfident Opportunity to talk to students before arrival Opportunity to talk to staff before arrival Opportunity to ask questions relating to my individual circumstances Better information on the university website An open day that focuses more on these services 0 50 20 60 30 40 10