Analysis by Campaign for the Arts showed that the share of total entries in arts subjects contracted by 0.5% reaching the lowest level in 15 years, but indicating a slower decline than last year’s 3% drop.

Among the top ten subjects overall, Art & Design dropped from eighth to ninth place with 43,124 entries, representing a 9.4% decline in total entries for the subject since 2010. Meanwhile, Drama saw a 6.7% drop in entries to 8038, a 53% long-term decline since 2010.

There were minor signs of growth in Dance, Design & Technology, and Media/Film/TV studies, which saw respective increases of 0.4%, 0.7%, and 1.9%; however, these did not offset the long-term declines since 2010 of 59%, 44%, and 32%.