RISING COSTS ARE A MAJOR BARRIER, WARN ORDINARY GRADS
The huge cost of studying for a postgraduate qualification is putting off ordinary graduates from applying, a new survey has revealed – and experts warn that a crisis could be looming, as further study becomes a luxury option available only to those from wealthy backgrounds.
The latest research by TARGETcourses – which polled nearly 2,000 undergraduates – has revealed that cost is the main barrier to continuing their education at a higher level once they graduate with their first degree. With fees rising and public funding uncertain, a growing number of those considering further study are planning to borrow money from their parents, delay starting their course, work part-time during the course, live at home or turn to their bank for financial help. The survey found that:
– The top two reasons for not enrolling on a postgraduate course were the cost and the lack of funding available
– Four in ten respondents said they would seriously consider studying a postgraduate course abroad (where fees are lower, or sometimes zero)
– Six in ten expect to work part-time during their postgraduate course to make ends meet
– Nearly half say they would borrow money from their family to pay for their postgraduate course
– More than a quarter of state-educated UK undergraduates plan to live at home while completing their postgraduate study
Clearly, this is bad news for anybody who is keen to pursue their studies beyond their undergraduate degree. But experts fear it could also spell disaster for the UK economy. Chris Phillips, Research and Information Director at GTI Media – which owns TARGETcourses – said:
“This could be a real problem for the UK economy. As we move away from traditional industries to cement our place in the world as a smart, modern, high-tech creator and exporter, we need a more educated workforce. If postgraduate education becomes less of an attractive option for our brightest undergrads, there will be consequences a few years down the line.”
Already, more UK undergraduates are studying abroad, especially in European countries that offer postgraduate education (in English), with lower fees (or sometimes no fees at all). Germany and Scandinavia are particularly popular destinations.
There are fears that over time, UK universities could lose their hard-won reputation for quality, which could further depress their attractiveness to everyone, including international students who currently pay even higher fees than British students. The crisis could impact undergraduates too, as universities are increasingly dependent upon fees from postgraduates to run their institutions now that the government has severely cut back on funding.
Worse still, there are warnings that the full effects are not even being felt yet. Don’t forget, those students who have paid the new, higher tuition fees for their undergraduate courses have not finished their first degrees yet. And with some predicting that average debts could reach £53,000 when they graduate in 2015, aren’t they surely even less likely to shell out for expensive postgraduate courses?
*HAS THE COST PUT YOU OFF POSTGRADUATE STUDY?
Should more funding, bursaries and loans be made available so that graduates from all backgrounds can continue their studies if they wish? Or do universities simply need a new business model that relies less heavily on hefty fees from all their students, whether they’re studying at undergraduate or postgraduate level? Is postgraduate study available to all, or only those from wealthier backgrounds?
No comments here yet but lots of Retweets and comments on Twitter:
@SophieWarnes says:
interesting – I only started my MA because I was given the money to do it. Also work at 3 different employers!
@TrashTaylor says:
The only way I can afford a postgrad is to take on more debt, which I’m not happy about.
@Wolvesnam says:
Unless you get a Career & Development loan like I did. There are options albeit limited.
[it cost] £4,300ish as my Uni do a 20% discount if you studied an undergrad here. Repayments start Dec 2015 for 2 yrs.
You can spread the repayments over 5 years but then interest comes into play.
I work full-time and study part-time at one evening a week. The things we do for the subjects we love!
@KerrySocialGeek says:
Yep, I’ve had to defer units until next yr as I couldn’t afford the fees and the cost of living!
@MissLauraMarcus says:
Very worrying…
Having spoken to quite a few universities recently, it will be the less traditional, non-Russell Group universities that will suffer most from falling PG student numbers. These are the universities which traditionally draw a more diverse undergraduate population.
And if you add to this argument the findings from the TARGETcourses survey that reveal that state-educated undergraduates are more likely to live at home while studying, more likely to study part-time, more likely to say that financial issues prevent them continuing their education and more cautious about spending their own money for PG study than those who went to private/independent schools – then you not only have a problem with numbers, you also have a problem with the restriction of opportunities for large sections of the population.
@Chris Phillips
Thanks for your comment Chris – as you say, this trend is pretty troubling. Do you know if anything positive is being done to try and address these problems?
Also, if we agree that those with postgraduate qualifications are more attractive to employers than those without, does it follow that these poorer grads could be blocked from competing for the best jobs when they come to joining the world of work? In other words, what impact do you predict this trend could have on the graduate job market?
There are some positive signs. An extra tranche of funding was agreed recently for PhD research but this was targeted at a small group of universities.
Personally, I think that already indebted students who can’t fall back on their parents to help them out will suffer and, as I say in the Report, this could have implications for future PG numbers – and the impact will not only be felt by universities.
Not really fair to say it’s an option for those from ‘wealthy backgrounds’. I’ve lived at home for university and saved up that way.
Certainly something I can’t afford – at least not full-time or even part-time.
Was sick of people asking if I was doing a Masters in final year in 2011, me saying I couldn’t afford and them asking “Can’t your parents help?” as though they couldn’t conceive of parents who didn’t have thousands and thousands of pounds lying down their couch to give to each of their (in my case) four kids. (My family help me even now, but they couldn’t spare that much – especially just for me and not doing something similar for siblings).
If I could get work lasting long enough (years) to pay off my overdraft and save up enough for a Masters (a year’s rent plus fees) I’d be loath to leave that job and blow that potential rainy day fund on something which may not have that much value (in strict financial terms) anyway.
Perhaps one day through Open University or by correspondence course as an intellectual endeavour?
I do think Alex that universities will have to invest in more flexible and cheaper methods of PG study as, with the increase in student UG debt and the fact that not everyone has access to family funds, they will start to lose student numbers – and that’s not an outcome that they will be very happy with…
@Chris: “Then you not only have a problem with numbers, you also have a problem with the restriction of opportunities for large sections of the population”
Indeed. My parents don’t live in a city, so even if I moved back to my mum’s from my university city to save on rent, and somehow cobbled together the fees for a postgrad course, I could still potentially be spending £200 or more a month on the train commuting to the nearest unis (20 miles away).
I certainly know people who can only do a postgrad course cos their parents live in a city or metropolitan area a short, cheap commute from a university.
@Chris: A lot of unis seem happy with the foreign (especially Far Eastern) postgrad candidates they get though, and the small pool of British students who can manage it.
Some universities have undergraduates – and lecturers (since they need to have done postgrad too) – disproportionately from wealthy backgrounds, so I’m not sure if they necessarily see how serious an issue it is.
At least I didn’t carry on with a Law degree I tried (switched to International Relations with a year in Germany). Would never have been able to afford an LPC and all the unpaid work ;).
Hi Alex. Can I use your comments in a blog I am writing about the finance issues that could prevent people undertaking PG study? It’s getting a fair bit of interest. You can be anonymous of course!
@Chris: Yes that’s fine. I don’t need to be anonymous 😉 Send me a DM on Twitter (my name above links to it) if you need to ask anything else about it.
An absolute waste of time…and so is a first degree. The PG world is overscubscribed by Rich Asian students paying overseas rates….that was my experience at Warwick and probably true elsewhere…
When I graduated in 1998 with an MA in International Political Economy from Warwick University, after a couple of months on the dole in Kenilworth and unable to find a job in financial services in London, a careers adviser lamented on my misfortunes and application rejections, mis-quoting Groucho Marx ‘Would you want to join a club that would not have you as a member’ when, in fact, the correct saying is ‘I refuse to join any club that would have me as a member’…..That is what my graduate fees went into! A careers adviser who could not event quote Groucho Marx correctly! DON’T DO IT PEOPLE! DEGREES are a waste of time and money.
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