4647East and the MidlandsThe reasons given by these students for their decision to go to university were something of a mixed bag, with more than average seeking to specialise in a certain subject area (60% were, compared with a national average of 57%) and to improve their job opportunities (which was a factor for three quarters, or 75% of respondents). However, the findings also suggest that these students were more likely to be motivated by the choices of their friends (16% said the fact that 'all their friends were going' to university had played a part in their decision, compared to 13% for the UK as a whole).Less influential factors included a desire to have a good social life (which mattered to just 23%, far less than the 31% who cared about this in Northern Ireland), and the expectations of parents (also 23%). It also seems that universities in the East and the Midlands cannot count on their geographic location as a major draw: just four in 10 students here (38%) listed this as among their reasons for choosing their institution, among the lowest proportion anywhere in the country. However, an unusually high percentage was drawn by the region's campus universities (which attracted almost half, or 46%, of students, far above the UK average of 34%). Accommodation costs were slightly below average in the East and the Midlands, with those paying over £300 a month in rent in the minority (46% did, compared with an average of 51% for the UK as a whole), while the proportion of students who expected to incur debts of over £20,000 was par for the course nationally (30% did). The finding that students in this region were less likely than some others to have done so to improve their social life chimes with the fact that more students than in any other region said they did not spend any time at all socialising in a typical week (16% did not) or any time playing sport (46%). However, unlike in London and the South East, this did not equate with an increase in feelings of isolation: just 6% of students here said they felt lonely, slightly below the national average.46% chose because it was a campus university

4849NorthAs with the East and the Midlands, the North of England appears not to hold much allure for students as a region, with fewer respondents saying they had been lured by the geographic location than in any other part of the UK (just 37% had). Instead, these undergraduates had often been wowed by the impression garnered during open days, which for over half (59%) had played a part in their choice of where to study. Living up to its reputation for being a particularly welcoming part of the country, universities in the North also scored well for their friendly atmosphere, a factor for 45% of respondents. More students here also looked for an active social life (32% did) than in any of the other regions assessed, which may be reflected in the fact that over a quarter (26%) said they drank more than 10 units of alcohol in an average week (around five pints of beer), more than in any other region except the South West and Wales (where the figure was also 26%).Looking at financial matters, students in the North were more likely than most to receive a bursary or scholarship (over one in three, or 37%, did), while they were also more likely to rely on less sustainable lending such as bank loans (which were taken out by a quarter, or 25%). However the proportion who worked part-time during term-time (21%) or full-time during the holidays (8%) was below average, perhaps reflecting the scarcity of jobs in some parts of the North of England at present. One saving grace for students here was that rent was relatively low, with the proportion who paid over £300 a month (43%) among the lowest in the country. In terms of anxieties, students in the North were the most likely to worry about getting a job after graduation (58% did), but were relatively sanguine about debt, with fewer than one in three (29%) listing this as a concern, compared to 33% in London and the South East and the South West and Wales.9% of students were wowed by open days