Accommodation is not guaranteed for new students at the University of Glasgow this year.
Students who live within commuting distance were automatically denied accommodation after receiving their results on Tuesday.
Prospective students from abroad were also informed that they were no longer guaranteed a place to stay.
The university blamed increased demand and a “significant drop” in Glasgow’s private rental market.
The Student Council (SRC) claimed that the university had taken on too many new students.
The university said it increased the number of rooms it manages by 25%.
However, she could no longer guarantee housing for newcomers and strongly discouraged students from enrolling at the university unless they had secured housing.
English students will only find out if they have a room in a dormitory within 10 working days after receiving their high school diploma on August 18th.
Elissa Varley, 18, from Burton-on-Trent, has a conditional offer to study Politics at Glasgow University.
She told BBC Scotland: “I was really looking forward to going but now it looks like I won’t be able to go at all.
“Either I withdraw my application, which would also remove my insurance option, or I take a risk and try to find private housing in two weeks and may end up without a place to stay.
“I don’t even know my results and if I got in and then I have two weeks to find homestay.
“I can’t commute for five and a half hours.
“I wish they had told us earlier so I would have been better prepared to look at other housing or I could have contacted another university through clearing.”
Elissa’s father Duncan said: “When she comes in she has two weeks to find a room in a market which Glasgow University has admitted is not a lot of accommodation.
“There could be hundreds of other people looking for housing at the same time.
“It’s hard to imagine that they couldn’t foresee that.”
David Todd lives in Manchester and is expected to do his PhD at the University of Glasgow
He told BBC Scotland: “I’ve relied on postgraduate housing through the university to house me as I can’t really afford to live somewhere too expensive and I don’t know anyone in Glasgow.
“I’ve waited a whole year to finally get started and now it looks like I’ll have to put off a year or give up altogether.
“I just don’t understand why it took them so long to let everyone know about the accommodation.”
An English mother of a prospective student at the university’s business school said: ‘If he meets his offered grades, he may have to turn down the offer as he would end up with nowhere to live.
“I think he’ll probably turn down the offer as waiting up to 10 days to find out if he has accommodation is ridiculous.
- What the university looked like for the class of Covid
- Hardship funding for students has doubled in the past year
“It’s a real choice to wait a year or go somewhere less good through clearing.
“He would not have applied in Glasgow but would have accepted an offer on his own if we had known accommodation was not guaranteed.”
A statement from the University’s SRC said: “The SRC is aware of the issues that have led to this issue and we would like to express our disappointment with the University’s actions.
“Following the housing crisis across Glasgow last year, the SRC urged the university to commit to a moratorium on student numbers, however it now appears that over-recruitment has helped create a similar situation.”
SRC President Rinna Vare said the student council was “very concerned” about how the shortage would affect the experience of freshmen.
She added: “While we are aware that this is a broader issue in the city, we are trying to urge the university to communicate about these issues as early as possible.
“Our advice center can support students with all issues and help them to consider their options.”
A spokesman for the University of Glasgow said: “Unfortunately, due to a significant contraction in the private rental market, demand for rooms remains well above expectations and we are no longer able to offer guaranteed university accommodation.
“Although we have increased the number of rooms in university administration by 25 percent for the new academic year, we must prioritize the accommodation of students who cannot travel from home.
“We understand students’ concerns about finding accommodation for the new semester.”
The spokesman added that while the university cannot offer accommodation for students living within “reasonable distance for commuting,” the university will continue to regularly check the availability of private provider accommodation and provide any updates.
They also called on people who are looking for information and advice on finding private rental accommodation to contact the SRK’s advice center.
Add Comment