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 | | Wednesday, 16 May, 2001, 10:21 GMT 11:21 UK Student debt: Will they put you off going to university?  The government will miss its target of getting 50% of under-30s into university by 2010 without more help for lower income students. Its report on universities in England says many youngsters from poorer families are deciding not to go into higher education because of money worries. While more students than ever are going to university, the proportion of those from lower social groups - about 28% - has not changed since 1994, the NAO report found. Since the introduction of tuition fees and the replacement of maintenance grants with loans, graduates are now likely to leave university with debts of �10,000 to �16,000. What do you think? Should the government be doing more to help poorer students? Does student debt put you off going to university?
The law faculty at Oxford have recently reviewed their course. They expect students to spend 45 hours a week studying. It is also forbidden by several colleges to have jobs in term time. To expect students to work to pay for their studies would be unreasonable if they were to keep up with their course. There is also the fact that working for 15 hours a week wouldn't even cover the cost of my rent, and that's in college accommodation. Those that assume all students are able to work in term time are just mistaken.
On top of this I am paying a higher rate of tax. It is no wonder that people don't want to go to university. Then on top of that people complain that there is a lack of teachers, doctors, IT people, engineers etc. You can't have your cake and eat it. In 20 years time this country is going to have no good graduates leaving university because it will be too expensive and then how can the country compete on a world stage Vishal Vashisht, UK I would not have gone to University if it would have left me with a �10,000 to �16,000 debt. I work in software, and it took me three years to gain the same salary level as a friend who went into supermarket management with A-levels. He has recently overtaken my salary again, since he has been given regional responsibilities. He worked just as hard for this as he would have done at University, but he was paid at the time rather than having to pay fees. Having graduated from university last year I am now in so much debt - student loans, overdraft and credit cards all to pay off. I just don't really know if it was worth going to uni in the first place. Its going to take 2 years to pay back the loans, so I cant even make any plans financially. I received a grant, however it was �200 per team which paid for a months rent! My cousin tried his best to support himself while earning a degree, but at the end of the day he couldn't focus on his work long enough to pass because he was working eight hours a day 5 days a week and then trying to study and go to university! I think we must now understand that university is now the preserve of the rich and degrees are going to be much more difficult to get. | | See also:  Internet links: The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites Other Talking Points: | |||||||||||||||||
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