The BSc in electronic business management was desperately undersubscribed - only three people had

The BSc in electronic business management was desperately undersubscribed - only three people had applied for 20 places - so the engineering department decided to cut its losses and axe the course.In addition, the intake for Plymouth's BEng degree in civil engineering was lower than hoped. "We've done reasonably well," says Ken Young, the admissions officer. "We have a result that is more or less dead on."Problems have been more acute in the new universities. With a bit of deft massaging, it moved applicants around to ensure it hit its targets. With a 3,000 new student intake, it found itself short of students in physics, as well as in civil and electrical engineering (nationally, applications for civil engineering have dropped 12 per cent this year).But Newcastle was over quota in marine technology and some other popular subjects. Although few institutions report failing to fill overall target numbers, many say they have had to engage in elaborate juggling within subject categories to ensure they meet targets and avoid financial penalty.The case of Newcastle University, a big, established civic university, is typical. Applications for media studies courses are, for example, 50 per cent up on last year, according to the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service.

They don't want to mess with what they see as the dreary, poorly paid worlds of science and technology.These trends are being repeated again this year, according to spokesmen for universities around the country. The shortfalls occur despite government help in the form of adjusted fees to the universities to encourage the recruitment of students in these areas.Universities are churning out graduates in psychology, law and media studies. But they are failing, despite repeated and energetic attempts, to produce the expertise in science, engineering and technology that the nation needs for a healthy manufacturing base.It seems the country's youth want to be journalists and psychologists, lawyers and businessmen. Missing the target means contraction - cutting courses and laying off staff.London Guildhall has extra problems. As a former Inner London Education Authority polytechnic, it inherited liabilities and scattered, poor-quality buildings.

That, combined with the difficulty in finding students, has put it in the red. It has virtually no science or engineering, no green fields, not a shrub to its name. Today, because it is on its own, and having to compete with old and new universities, it is less secure than it once was.Across the university sector, places are hard to fill in mathematics, engineering, technology and the sciences, subjects that are considered intellectually difficult and not always well taught in schools and universities. London Guildhall expects to lose pounds 500,000 and Sheffield Hallam will also find itself lacking funds, though it has not calculated how much.Hitting the right target for students - guessing how many you might be able to attract and then finding them - is a nerve-wracking business for some universities.

Going over target means squeezing more students in for the same amount of money; falling under means lost fees and having money clawed back. South Bank expects to lose pounds 2m as a result of failing to recruit enough students in the unpopular subjects, according to vice-chancellor Professor Gerald Bernbaum. Failing to meet targets established with the Universities Funding Council is a serious matter because it means loss of money. London Guildhall University, for example, has around 100 empty spaces, Sheffield Hallam is a few hundred short, and South Bank University, also in London, is 500 to 600 students below target. Students are going to university in record numbers but, like last year, not all universities are able to fill all their places. They closed 6p higher at 118p.Wembley reacted uneasily to the unexpected "extra time" for the proposed new national stadium, falling 25p to 312p.Bunzl, the packaging group, edged forward 2p to 203p.. The shares at one time showed a 45p gain; they closed 20p higher at 528p in busy trading.Bluebird, the toys group, was little moved by talk that US toy maker Hasbro had lifted its stake to more than 9 per cent; the price firmed to 354p.Among the bio babes Cortecs International traded up to 126p with stockbroker Greig Middleton said to be putting a value of 173p on the shares.