University – is it worth what we pay, and if fees increase, will it ever be?

As a university student this question is of particular interest to me, as it should be to everyone given the fact that Britain is in the midst of a significant economic downturn. With both universities and students looking for value for money it appears the two will soon collide, with potentially disastrous results for higher education in this country, and those wishing to enter it. Currently fees are capped at £3,145 per year, meaning that completion of a three-year course at a British university would cost £9,435, which not only places a burden on the majority of families but the students themselves. The inconvenient truth is that already potential students from working-class backgrounds have taken a smaller share of places at universities since the introduction of tuition fees in 2006. Those that have been able to attend university will likely be left feeling ripped-off, especially if they study a subject such as English or History. Many students feel that there should not be a flat rate for tuition fees, and that other aspects should be taken into account, such as the average number of contact hours each course provides and the actual amount it costs the university to run it. On this basis a second-year English student with just five or six contact hours per week would feel extremely hard done by, especially considering the cost involved in the purchase of course books and other necessary material. On the other hand a Pharmacy student would be far more satisfied paying over £3000 for more than thirty contact hours per week. Whilst most students can understand that fees are necessary in order to keep universities running and provide the type of education they feel is appropriate, it is the way in which universities disregard the needs and views of students on this issue, and are seemingly unaware of the pressure students are put under financially that creates a problem. A student graduating in 2011 can expect to be burdened with over £17,000 worth of debt, with the figure rising to £23,000 for those finishing just a year later in 2012, as well as huge difficulty in finding suitable employment, especially in the current economic climate. Yet it seems vice-Chancellors are conveniently ignoring these facts.

Seeing as the increase in university attendance over the last few years has come about to a large extent due to the Labour government encouraging more people into higher education, many current and potential students take a dim view of the proposed fee increases. Indeed a report by Universities UK (UUK) predicts that raising tuition fees from £3000 to £5000 a year would not put students off higher education and would in fact maintain the status quo, merely making it significantly more expensive. Although UUK has given the go-ahead to raising fees, it seems to be, along with the government ignoring the fact that this potential rise would mean students graduating in 2016 would have to pay back over £32,000, almost double the amount for 2011 graduates. University vice-Chancellors have long argued for a ‘sharp increase in tuition fees’, aiming at between £4,000 and £20,000 per year. Two thirds of vice-chancellors want the current cap on tuition fees to be raised whilst more than half wanted fees of at least £5,000 or more, or for there to be no upper limit. The National Union of Students has understandably reacted angrily to the proposed increases, with President Wes Streeting pointing out that “in the context of the current recession it is extremely arrogant for university vice-chancellors to be fantasising about charging their students even higher fees and plunging them into over £32,000 worth of debt”. It appears then that university vice-chancellors are seriously out-of-touch with the views of ordinary students, who are merely attempting to gain an education and complete further study in the hope that it will enable them to have a successful future career and enter whatever profession they wish.

When asked vice-Chancellors suggested a wide range of figures for tuition fees, with £6,500 the average amount. They claim that due to spiralling operating costs fee rises are essential, yet fail to realise that if university fees were raised to £7,000 per year then students from low-income families would be discouraged, thereby re-enforcing the type of class barriers New Labour set out to remove. It seems therefore that gaining a university education is fast becoming a privilege for the few, ill-reflecting the working situation within this country. Over the past few years it has become almost impossible to gain employment with sufficient prospects without a degree. By increasing fees to the levels talked about the government would be essentially betraying itself; destroying the educational system it helped to create and leaving a generation to suffer the consequences of its actions. The fact that some institutions, such as the University of Reading have seen fit to close departments that aren’t cost efficient shows that the gap between what the government and universities are saying and what they are doing is growing sharply. Ministers may want 50% of young people to be in higher education, but the figure will only drop from the current 43% level if fees are allowed to spiral out of control. An increase to between £5000 and £7000 will hit middle-class families, many of which fall outside the boundary of government support, hardest and will mean, in the words of NUS President Wes Streeting that “many more people from poorer backgrounds will be forced to conclude that they simply cannot afford to go to university at all”. At least then they won’t have to consider whether or not a particular course offers them sufficient value for money.