Applying to university today increasingly depends on digital access. The right device, a reliable connection, and the skills to use them have become as critical as exam results or personal statements. Without them, ambition too often stalls at the first hurdle.
The Digital Poverty Alliance’s new higher education report reveals what this means in practice. Families and students describe coursework written on phones, university applications slowed by shared laptops, and the constant worry of falling behind. Almost all respondents agreed a personal laptop was essential, yet extended loan schemes are offered by only a fraction of universities. Generative AI is now part of daily academic life, but confidence and access are concentrated among students from more advantaged backgrounds.
These gaps affect not only study but wellbeing and aspiration. Parents fear children being isolated as the “odd one out” in class. Students already stretched by living costs take on extra shifts that reduce the time and energy needed to succeed. Digital poverty is not an inconvenience at the edges of higher education – it is embedded in the system itself.
On End Digital Poverty Day, the Digital Poverty Alliance (DPA) will host a webinar to explore what must change. Elizabeth Anderson, CEO, Digital Poverty Alliance, will be joined by Tracey Jessup, Chief Transformation and Resources Officer at De Montfort University Leicester, to discuss how universities, policymakers, and partners can respond – through targeted bursaries, extended device provision, consistent digital literacy training, and clear guidance on the ethical use of AI.
The webinar takes place from 11am to 12pm on Friday 12 September 2025.