There is considerable discussion in the sector about the size and scope of provision: departments closing, regional “cold spots” and declining humanities numbers. But what does the data tell us?
The Discover Uni dataset records what institutions advertise each year and includes CAH and (some) HECOS* subject codes. Counting the number of institutions recording programmes in each subject provides a blunt but useful indicator of sector‑wide provision.
First, the number of programmes has fallen: a decline of 6% across the five years considered.
| Year (Discover Uni dataset) | 2021/22 | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 | 2025/26 |
| Number of programmes | 22,983 | 23,158 | 22,025 | 21,507 | 21,643 |
Subjects in decline
But programme closures do not always equate to subject closures, they could reflect rationalisation in low-performing areas. And indeed, the number of CAH3 subject entries fell by a lower amount, 2% over the five years.
Business/Management codes saw the greatest decline over that period, followed by Social Policy and modern languages (most notably French Studies, Iberian Studies and German and Scandinavian studies). Next were Nutrition and Dietetics, Mathematics and English Language.
Shorter-term trends highlight reductions in the number of active providers for Journalism, Animal Science, Biosciences and Childhood and Youth.
The number of HECOS entries across institutions fell by 6% across the five years. The largest falls were observed in Media and Communications Studies, English Language, Politics, Management Studies, Nutrition and Mathematics.
The greatest single drop occurred between the 2024/25 and 2025/26 datasets, with a different set of subjects particularly affected: Biological Science, Food Science, Politics, Sports Therapy, Electrical And Electronic Engineering, Law, Adult Nursing and Digital Media.
Conclusions
The Discover Uni data supports the perception that humanities subjects, including Languages, English and Politics, have experienced a decline in provision in recent years.
The most recent data is also uncovering at risk STEM subjects (Mathematics, Nutrition, Biological Science, Electrical and Electronic Engineering) and high demand classroom-based subjects such as Law.
As institutions reassess portfolios in response to rising costs, demographic changes and geopolitical pressures, fewer subjects may be considered “safe”.
What’s next?
UniViz is producing a full analysis of changes in the size and scope of the HE market using Discover Uni data. I will be sharing some of the findings from this analysis as it progresses.
The full report will be available to download free later in 2025. To receive a copy on release, please complete this form: UniViz – Size and Shape Report 2026
* Methodological Footnotes
While all programmes in the Discover Uni dataset have a recorded CAH subject, it is not a requirement for all programmes to record a HECOS code. Following some manual and automated coding, nearly 70% of records included a HECOS code.
Each Discover Uni dataset includes programmes that start in the following academic year (i.e. the 2025/26 dataset includes programmes that start from September 2026).