Catch21 Productions | Tuition Fees

Tuition Fees - A New Approach

With a degree becoming prerequisite these days, going to university has become an essential part of a young persons path to “adulthood” but the question being asked by many people is: 'are people being unfairly priced out of that opportunity?' Since the introduction of tuition fees in 1997 the National Union of Students (NUS) has been championing the cause to get them abolished but at their recent annual conference after 10 years of lobbying against it they've decided to back down..or have they taken a more pragmatic approach?

Tuition fees are currently capped at £3070 but in 2009 there will be a funding review as to whether a “top-up” fee should be allowed. The NUS has now changed it stance to opposing top-up fees and what it terms the “marketisation of education”, and campaign for the creation of a fairer funding system for all students.

The actual fee for each student in higher education is around £10000 per year (on average) so you would think £3070 would be a bargain. So maybe students should incur the whole debt rather than relying on a hand out from the government. Is this a short sighted view though, does education transcend all this talk about money? In investing in education are we not investing in the future of our society?

I left university with a total debt of around £12000 and I was one of the lucky ones as I started before the £3070 cap was introduced. Now when students leave they will have a debt of around £16000, will this price the people from poorer backgrounds out? The figure for applicants from the poorest backgrounds has hovered around 12000-13000 in the past 5 years, so on the face of it, it doesn't seem that it is deterring people. What do you think, has the NUS taken a pragmatic approach by moving away from the abolition of fees or is it a concession that will lead to them eventually accepting top-up fees in the end too?

You can read NUS policy:
resource.nusonline.co.uk/media/resource/edfundbrief.pdf

Image thanks to Rogue Soul @ flickr

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Dan Smith
Posts: 1

Re: Tuition Fees - A New Approach
Reply #1 on : Sat April 12, 2008, 13:11:08

I think that you dont have to go to uni anymore - why spend all that money when so many graduates end up in office jobs any way but lower down in some cases than their peers who didnt go to uni...!