Universities must do more to "hunt down" working class students, higher education minister Margaret Hodge said on Thursday.

Defending the target of 50 per cent participation in higher education target, Hodge hit back at critics of the government's "anti-elitist" campaign to widen access to universities.

"It's been suggested that getting 50 per cent of 18-30 year olds into higher education by 2010 is either wrong or impossible. The fact is that the target is tough but it is achievable. It is not an act of political correctness, but an ambition driven by economic necessity," she said.

Hodge said the government was "not in the business of creating graduates for whom there are no jobs" and highlighted labour market forecasts which predicted a 1.7 million skills gap over the next decade.

"Our latest estimate is that around 41.5 per cent of young people under 30 are entering higher education. We only need around a one percentage point increase each year to help us meet the 50 per cent target. The record number of UCAS acceptances last year shows we are on our way," she told a University of London Union debate.

The minister warned universities that they must do more attract youngsters from disadvantaged areas who feel that university is not right for them or that they are not right for university.

"Universities are doing some good work already but we need them to convert effort into results," she said.

Recent official performance indicators show that many universities are failing to meet "participation benchmarks". The government is insisting that higher education institutions take a "proactive" approach to track down students.

"These universities tell me that they cannot attract applications from students from low income backgrounds. We will do what we can to help them. But, universities must do more themselves to 'hunt down' potential talent in secondary schools in disadvantaged areas with the aim of boosting the numbers of suitable students that eventually apply to their campuses," she said.