About the Applicant Index While there are many student surveys, there are few that focus on higher education applicants and none that track the attitudes of each cohort systematically over time. Now in its third year, the Unite Students / HEPI Applicant Index combines the responses to 36 questions, each measured on a 7-point scale of agreement, to generate nine composite scores in areas such as finance, learning and community. These scores range from 0 to 100 and are based on four equally weighted questions, except for the Wellbeing score which also incorporates the ONS standard wellbeing indicators. In each case, 0 is the least positive and 100 the most positive score. By tracking these questions year by year we are able to provide an early indication of the needs and attitudes of each cohort. The scores are supplemented by additional follow- up questions which explore the themes in more depth and provide a snapshot of topical issues. The 2024 Applicant Index is based on a survey of 2,190 higher education applicants planning to start an undergraduate degree or degree apprenticeship in the 2024-25 academic year. It was conducted via the Savanta panel between 8th-29th April 2024 and was weighted to be representative of the applicant population. This year, the survey achieved representative samples of Chinese and Indian domiciled applicants, and translation services were used to support Chinese respondents to engage with the survey. An overview of the sample, including weighting applied, can be found in the Methodology section towards the end of this report. All demographic differences noted in the report are significant to the 99% confidence level unless otherwise stated. ABOUT Unite Students | Applicant Index Report 8 INTRODUCTION THEMATIC ANALYSIS METHODOLOGY TOPICAL ISSUES BACK TO CONTENTS