The economic downturn appears to be prompting more people to apply for post-secondary education, the Council of Ontario Universities said on Monday.

About 84,300 people submitted applications for Ontario universities, the council, an administrative body for the province's post-secondary institutions, announced on Monday.

The only year on record where more people applied for university was 2003, the year of the double cohort when Ontario eliminated Grade 13 and two high school classes graduated at the same time. That year, 102,618 people applied to the province's central university application centre.

"People increasingly see the importance of a university degree to building a successful career in the knowledge economy, particularly when the economic conditions are challenging," said Dr. Peter George, chair of the council.

The number of applications received by the January deadline rose 1.1 per cent compared to the same time last year. In 2008, around 84,000 high school students applied for 64,000 spots at Ontario's 20 universities.

The number of applications has increased by 42 per cent since 2000, when 59,197 people applied.

University pensions, endowments hit by economic downturn

The continuing rise in the number of applicants will require a co-ordinated effort to "ensure that we can accommodate the students and provide them with a high-quality learning experience at a time when university budgets are under stress," George said.

The applicants, who are seeking a spot at a university for the fall term, include a large number of people who have already left high school, according to a council press release.

About 21,130 applicants are mature, transfer or out-of-province students or high school students who took a year off after graduating. There was a 9.9 per cent increase in non-secondary school applicants this year compared to 2008.

"Applicants know that this is a good time to attend university and get that degree or to upgrade their skills," said council president Dr. Paul C. Genest.

Genest said the council has observed increases in the number of people wishing to attend university during previous economic slow-downs.

But universities are not isolated from the economic downturn, and an increase in the number of students could also put the academic institutions under "severe strain," Genest said.

"Financial markets have dealt a sharp blow to pensions and endowments that support bursaries for students and research chairs," he said.