Thousands of young people denied a place at university last autumn have applied for degree courses starting in the coming academic year, fuelling a dramatic surge in applications to universities.

Applications received before Christmas rose 2.5% compared with the same period the year before – with a total of 335,795 candidates now chasing places for 2011 entry.

The picture emerging from the latest figures shows that candidates are racing to submit their applications at the last opportunity before the tripling of university tuition fees from autumn 2012.

Figures for the months leading up to Christmas show that more candidates applied early this year. There was a 20% increase in applications submitted in November and a 5% increase in October.

Competition will once again be intense. There are an additional 8,000 candidates this year chasing the same number of places as last year.

Applicants' subject choices indicate a decline in European languages, which dipped by 1.4%, and a 2% drop in demand for history and philosophy. Applications for medicine and dentistry rose by 3.5%, while the numbers applying for law rose by 2.9%.

The figures published today by the universities and colleges admission service, Ucas, reveal a slight drop in the number of under-18s applying, from around 193,000 to just under 191,000. But over 5,000 more 19-year-olds have applied compared with last year.

Applications from older students are also rising, with 2,000 more applications from candidates aged 20, and nearly 900 more applications from 21-year-olds.

Ministers funded an extra 10,000 places for undergraduates starting at English universities last year amid a dramatic increase in applications, but fierce competition saw one in three candidates missing out on university.

The government will continue to fund an extra 10,000 places this year, but this will be withdrawn by 2012.

Meanwhile, funding for university teaching will be cut by £300m for the coming academic year, from £4.9bn to £4.6bn. The grant for research will be cut by £100m.

Just over 404,000 candidates were accepted for undergraduate study in autumn 2010. The latest surge comes ahead of higher tuition fees for undergraduates starting in autumn 2012, when universities will be able to charge as much as £9,000 a year.

Ucas confirmed that applications were at a record high compared with the numbers received at the same point last year. The key deadline for applying to most university courses is January 15. After that date, universities do not guarantee that they will consider a candidate's application.