Diversity in the United Kingdom is regularly quantified through Census data. The latest figures (2021) for England and Wales indicate that 82% of the population identifies as white, 51% are females, 17.7%–22.3% are disabled, 18.2% hold no qualifications and 51.7% of households are deprived in at least one dimension. Furthermore, the median age in England and Wales is 40. All of these figures vary significantly across local geographical areas. Diversity in Higher Education (HE) is also monitored yearly by the Office for Students. The latest figures (2020/2021) indicate that 68.4% of entrants are under 21 years old, 56.5% are females, 14.8% report a disability and 21.8% are categorized as severely deprived. Some differences were observed between these figures and those from previous years. The current study aims to highlight how diversity in HE has evolved since 2010 and how the current landscape can illustrate significant differences between courses. Furthermore, comparisons with the general population are also measured in an attempt to describe potential bias in HE, together with new avenues that should be explored to level the HE field in regard to diversity. Our results indicate that access to HE needs to be improved for males, while strong discrepancies were observed between disciplines. Ethnic diversity remains high throughout the HE sector, although subject-specific biases were noted. An increase in students from the most deprived areas has been found, although it was not the case for all subjects within the sector. Finally, reported disabilities are on the rise, especially regarding mental health, warranting additional support for affected students. These findings are discussed and put into context. To conclude, HE providers might need to collegially address subject-specific discrepancies.

中文翻译：

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英国的多样性：与总人口相比高等教育的量化

英国的多样性定期通过人口普查数据进行量化。英格兰和威尔士的最新数据（2021 年）表明，82% 的人口为白人，51% 为女性，17.7%–22.3% 为残疾人，18.2% 没有资格，51.7% 的家庭被剥夺了至少一项权利方面。此外，英格兰和威尔士的平均年龄为 40 岁。所有这些数字在不同地区之间差异很大。学生办公室每年也会对高等教育（HE）的多样性进行监测。最新数据（2020/2021）表明，68.4%的参赛者年龄在21岁以下，56.5%是女性，14.8%报告有残疾，21.8%被归类为严重贫困。这些数字与往年的数字之间存在一些差异。当前的研究旨在强调自 2010 年以来高等教育的多样性是如何演变的，以及当前的情况如何说明课程之间的显着差异。此外，还与一般人群进行比较，试图描述高等教育的潜在偏差，以及应探索的新途径，以平衡高等教育领域的多样性。我们的结果表明，男性接受高等教育的机会需要改善，但不同学科之间存在很大差异。尽管注意到了特定学科的偏见，但整个高等教育领域的种族多样性仍然很高。来自最贫困地区的学生人数有所增加，但并非该部门所有科目的情况都是如此。最后，报告的残疾正在增加，特别是在心理健康方面，需要为受影响的学生提供额外支持。对这些发现进行了讨论并结合实际情况进行讨论。总而言之，高等教育提供者可能需要共同解决特定学科的差异。