If there hadn't been charities or hardship funds I wouldn't even have made it this far

PhD student

Matt Prescott is studying for a PhD in pollination ecology at Oxford University.

This was completely self-financed, he said - he had raised more than �40,000 in sponsorship and through his own work.

But the "crushing debt" he had been forced into - �9,800 so far - had made him doubt his chosen career.

"If it is bad now what is going to be like for academics in 20 years' time?" he wrote.

Long-term tax

"These are the sorts of things you have to think about when choosing a career and I have to say that if there hadn't been charities or hardship funds I wouldn't even have made it this far!"

The present (and the last) government don't really care about this issue

Research associate

He would favour a 1% graduate tax, payable over his working life.

"I want to teach, study and contribute to our country's future in a meaningful way, but I cannot subsidise society's indifference with my life forever...

"If I as a passionate ecologist feel like this then I can imagine how many others must be wondering whether a career in academia or science is the right choice for them. Who will become our next generation of academics and will those we already have leave the country...?"

'Governments don't care'

Post-doctoral research associate Mark Thompson said it was very difficult to attract people into a "job" which paid about �5,000 to �8,000 a year when they had debts approaching �20,000 - especially when higher education wages lagged so far behind those in industry.

I feel very lucky to be able to go abroad to do my doctorate

PhD student in Switzerland

In biochemistry, for example, prospective research students were faced with the choice of a PhD at �8,000 a year or going into industry for a starting salary of about �18,000.

"Which would you rather do? A thriving industry is a good thing, but it has started to impact on the original university research carried out in the UK," he wrote.

"The present (and the last) government don't really care about this issue, they are of the mind that research is for those who have the dedication and love of their field to survive on a pittance. Some of us do, but it is hard going I can tell you... "

Study abroad

Someone who has found a partial way around the problem is Alice Johnson: She is doing her PhD in Switzerland.

She worked, part-time and in the holidays, throughout her three-year biology degree at University College London - despite being advised by her tutor not to because it might jeopardise her studies.

"I feel very lucky to be able to go abroad to do my doctorate. Most countries, especially EU countries to other EU nationals, are willing to fund foreign students. Apart from Britain," she added.

Lure of well-paid work

Anna-louise Willson said she and her partner would both love to have done PhDs - but were put off by the sums.

Despite debts totalling more than �20,000 they were enjoying the fruits of their previous study in having well-paid jobs as software engineers.

"If a couple with children such as ourselves had chosen to continue to study ... or chosen a lesser paid profession such as teaching, I expect we would have continued to claim state benefits and would have been in debt for the rest of our lives!" she wrote.

She expects more people to opt for the sort of degree courses that will allow them to get jobs that will pay off their debts quickly.

"I expect that the government may start waking up to these issues once the drop in expertise in the healthcare industries and other 'people' professions really starts to take effect," she added.

Quality spiral

Dr Peter Cotgreave, of the lobby group Save British Science, said the anecdotal impact was borne out in research it had done among university deans of science.

it's a big issue for the whole future and well-being of the economy and the country

Dr Peter Cotgreave, Save British Science

At least 79% said it was getting harder to recruit researchers. And - under the promise of anonymity - 37% said they had appointed students, postdoctoral researchers or lecturers "who would not have been considered good enough in the past".

"So it really is true that universities are finding it harder to get good people," he said.

The key stage was going onto to do a PhD. If people did not do that they would never progress further up the research ladder - they were lost to the system forever.

"The issue is not how many people, it's the quality - how many of the best people want to stay and do that," he said.

This would lead to a "spiral of decline" with poorer quality lecturers not enthusing the next generation, who would then be even less likely to go into research and teaching.

"So it's a big issue for the whole future and well-being of the economy and the country."