Rise in A-level students studying design

Following a trend that suggests traditional A-level subjects are being taken up ahead of ‘soft’ subjects, there has been an increase of almost 4 per cent in the number of people sitting art and design subjects at school.

The number of pupils sitting art and design A-levels rose from 43 149 to 44 789 between 2007 and 2008, according to the Joint Council for Qualifications.

Of the total number of students sitting A-levels this coming academic year, provisional statistics indicate 5.35 per cent of them will be taking art and design subjects.

This year’s results suggest that many more girls than boys are studying art and design subjects – 30 968 female students compared to just 13 244 male students

The increase is offset by a decrease in the number of students taking subjects such as communication studies and general studies, which dropped 3.65 per cent and 2.23 per cent respectively between 2007 and 2008.