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Welfare Reform on the Web (January 2003): Education - UK - Higher

ALL STUDENTS 'SHOULD PAY TUITION FEES'

J. Clare

The Daily Telegraph, November 19th 2002 p1

All university students, not just those whose parents earn more than £20,000 a year, should contribute to the cost of their degrees, the Department for Education suggested yesterday.

ALL WILL BE REVEALED

J. Budd

Guardian Education, November 12th 2002, p. 14-15

American universities need armies of staff to investigate how much students can afford to pay towards their education. The author asks if top-up fees would bring the same level of scrutiny to Britain.

AUTONOMY CHIEF'S GIFT TO COLLEGE HERALDS MOVE TOWARDS US-STYLE ACADEMIC FUNDING

J. Kelly

Financial Times, Oct. 24th 2002, p. 4

Christ's College Cambridge is seeking to raise an endowment fund of £15m. The money would help to secure the long term future of the college in the face of inadequate state funding. Universities generally will need to find new income streams to support wider access and compete with US colleges which have big endowment funds.

CHAMPION OF ACCESS STANDS SOLID AS A ROCK AGAINST TOP-UP FEES

M. Nicholson

Financial Times, Nov. 28th 2002, p.4

The principal of Edinburgh University has criticised the idea of allowing institutions to charge students top-up fees on the grounds that this would deter youngsters from poor families from entering higher education.

CHANCELLOR AT ODDS WITH BLAIR OVER TOP-UP FEES

P. Wintour

The Guardian, November 20th 2002, p. 2

Gordon Brown has stepped into the debate on funding of higher education by voicing doubts about top-up fees, the preferred option of Downing Street. After Clare Shorts' similar comments earlier there appears to be a wide rift inside the cabinet over the governments public service charges.

GRADUATE TAX FAIRER THAN TOP-UP FEES - CLARKE

W. Woodward

The Guardian, November 20th 2002, p. 13

A graduate tax rather than top-up fees would be the fairest way to solve the university funding crisis, the Education Secretary, Charles Clarke, hinted in a new discussion document.

HIGHER EDUCATION AND SOCIAL CLASS: ISSUES OF EXCLUSION AND INCLUSION

L. Archer, M. Hutchings and A. Ross

London: Routledge Falmer, 2003

This book examines the reasons why working class groups are under-represented in higher education. It looks specifically at access to information about university, the value of higher education to working class groups, the costs of participating and issues of gender and ethnicity.

HIGHER TUITION FEES 'DO NOT DETER POORER STUDENTS'

J. Kelly

Financial Times, November 29th 2002, p. 4

Ministers considering higher tuition fees for university students have been presented with US evidence that such a system will not hit applications from the less well off. A report by the College Board of America suggests applicants view debt as a long-term investment.

LEARN NOW, PAY LATER

I. Crawford

Guardian Society, November 19th 2002, p. 11

The author notes that 'abolition' of student fees is already working to everybody's benefit north of the border. In reality, the Scottish executive has used the student loan system to defer payment, thus abolishing up-front fees.

MIDDLE MARCH

C. Ryan

Guardian Society, November 19th 2002, p. 10

The author warns that unregulated top-up fees may deter poorer students and alienate a whole clan of voters.

MINISTERS MAY SPLIT FUNDING FOR UNIVERSITIES

J. Kelly and K. Guha

Financial Times, November 20th 2002, p. 7

Ministers are considering splitting the funding of higher education between research and teaching institutions. The proposal would in effect, introduce a two-tier system similar to the one operating before 1992, when polytechnics became universities.

MPs ATTACK UNIVERSITIES OVER SCIENCE BASE FAILURE

J. Eaglesham

Financial Times, November 20th 2002, p. 3

Universities have failed Britain's science base because of their "callous and short-sighted" management culture, according to a report by the Science and Technology Committee. The report warns that researchers are being driven overseas or into the private sector because of "ostrich-like" funding.

NUMBER OF JOBLESS GRADUATES RISES

R. Garner

The Independent, November 11th 2002, p. 7

Graduate unemployment is rising for the first time in a decade, according to a report published by the CSO, the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services and the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service. The proportion out of work six months after completing a degree rose to 6.3 per cent from 5.5 per cent the previous year. The main factor behind the rise has been the decline in the information technology industry.

SHORT BREAKS RANKS ON TOP-UP FEES

J. Ashley and P. Wintour

The Guardian, November 18th 2002, p. 1

Clare Short became the first Cabinet Minister to break ranks on the issue of top-up fees for universities. She warned that if top-up fees are accepted by ministers "we'd have real two-tier universities and the rich would pay extra fees and go to the elitist universities rather like the US".

(See also The Independent, November 18th 2002, p. 4)

SLOW PATH TO ENLIGHTENMENT

C. Ryan

Public Finance, Oct. 18th - 24th 2002, p. 26-27

The government is torn between the need to appease middle class voters who resent student loans and course fees and its aim of encouraging more working class people to go to university. Article predicts that a maintenance grant will be reintroduced, but that middle class students will be charged higher tuition fees. Universities may also be paid a premium for recruiting students from low-income families. Higher education may also become more competitive, with applicants encouraged to "shop around" and funding following the student. Popular universities would be allowed to expand, but failing institutions might close down.

STUDENTS' DEMANDS AND EXPECTATIONS IN AN AGE OF REDUCED FINANCIAL SUPPORT: THE PERSPECTIVES OF LECTURERS IN FOUR ENGLISH UNIVERSITIES

H. Rolfe

Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, vol. 24, 2002, p. 171-182

Paper uses qualitative data from interviews with lecturers to explore the effects of changes in financial support on students' demands and expectations. Four main changes were identified:

  • more students enter higher education for career reasons than in the past;
  • students are more interested in vocational training than academic study;
  • they are less willing to undertake independent study and require more direction and guidance than in the past;
  • increased part-time working is adversely affecting attendance and study.
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