Contents 1 Introduction 3 Foreword - Joe Lister 4 Foreword - Nick Hillman 5 Executive summary 7 About the Applicant Index 8 Notes on data categories 8 Applicant Index scores 2022-24 9 Introducing the themes 10 2 Thematic analysis 11 Finance 12 Social 16 Community 18 Wellbeing 20 Resilience 25 Learning 26 Employment 28 Independence 29 Sustainability 30 3 Topical issues 32 Motivations for higher education 33 Reason for choosing a higher education provider 34 Alternatives to a traditional degree 35 Withdrawing before enrolment 36 Impact of technology 37 4 Methodology 39 Methodology 40 Unite Students | Applicant Index Report 2