Tuition fees debate confusion continues

Following the announcement that universities may charge a maximum of £9,000 in tuition fees from 2012, confusion has reigned. Under the new scheme universities will offer different price ranges. The University of Warwick follows the lead of the Russell Group and has announced that it will set fees at the full £9,000 for home and EU Undergraduate students for 2012 entry.

However, David Willetts, the Minister for Higher Education, described Warwick’s proposal as an example of “the commitment of institutions to fair access”. The University’s Senate and Council have now examined a proposal on fees and financial support which “would see students from state schools (or on full bursary schemes at independent schools), whose family income falls under £25,000, receive a package of fee waivers and bursaries worth a total of up to £4,500, which is equal to half the cost of the standard fee”.

The University has announced that it held a number of discussions on how best to enable the student finance system to promote widening participation. This would apply to around 1500 (19%) of Warwick’s current undergraduate student population.

Warwick’s 2+2 degrees and part time degrees, programmes that exist to offer opportunities that widen access, will have a fee of £6,000. An additional fee waiver may further reduce this cost. The University has also said that as part of its proposal Warwick will invest around £9.6 million in “new measures to further enhance the student experience”. Further details on these proposals will be available to undergraduate students for 2012 entry once they have been agreed with the Office for Fair Access in July 2011.

Following these announcements, students have expressed confusion at the range of fees across universities and even individual departments. First year Mathematics student, Callum Calvert said: “The new system seems to be very confusing. Prospective students may find it difficult to figure out exactly how much their degrees will cost them at various universities with the information available”.

Whilst David Willetts argues that many students “actually face the likelihood of hidden discounts” claiming that the reality is that “lots of students will not face fees anything close to £9,000 a year – including at the most prestigious universities”, it is still not entirely clear how this will be decided.

The University’s Education Officer, Sean Ruston, commented that: “Willetts’ claim is cynically misleading. Firstly, the reality is that the government has done an awful job of communicating the changes to sixth formers meaning many will be confused about their eligibility for such fee waivers”.

“Furthermore bursaries do not affect the price of a course and are aimed at helping students with living costs not reducing student debt – it is disingenuous to describe them as a ‘discount’. Willetts has long claimed that teenagers would not be put off by fees of £9000, but buying into the rhetoric of ‘discounts’ it’s clear that the government is actually assuming that they will”.

The government hopes that greater transparency will encourage competition by quality. They are confident that with universities publishing more data than ever before, a range in prices across the higher education sector will be guaranteed. Students will, according to the government, be comparing what is on offer to make sure they get the best deal possible.