STUDENTS starting university this year will pay record bills for their degrees, figures revealed yesterday.
Undergraduates now expect to pay an average of £33,152 to fund a three-year degree course, a 17 per cent increase on last year, according to the latest NatWest Student Money Matters survey. These costs will leave them with average debts of £14,779 by the time they complete their education.
Most of the rise is due to the introduction of top-up fees, which allow universities to charge up to £3,000 a year. Nearly 90 per cent of courses in England will charge the full amount from this September.
The growing cost of a degree means that the majority of students — 87 per cent — now believe that they will have to get a part-time job. Two thirds will rely on contributions from their parents.
Advertisement
The 3,133 sixth-form leavers questioned by NatWest said that they plan to spend an average of £2,000 less on living costs than those surveyed last year. They expect to spend £16,510 on these costs during the three years — compared with £18,375 last year — with predicted expenditure on alcohol, socialising and food all falling. This means that they will graduate with about 8 per cent more debt than last year’s cohort, despite the larger rises in costs.
Almost three quarters (71 per cent) of these sixth-form leavers said that a shortage of money was their biggest concern — considerably more than the 60 per cent who are worried about educational matters such as failing exams. They are prepared to tighten their belts because 79 per cent believe that going to university will help them with job prospects and 53 per cent aim to train for a career such as medicine or law.
Rises in the cost of university however, are not being matched by increased earnings after graduation. Of the graduates who responded to this year’s survey, the average starting salary was £13,860, down from £14,090 in 2005.
Only 41 per cent claimed to be “totally independent” from their parents despite having finished their courses. For many of those still at university, parental support is a necessity, even with part-time work and large loans. Two thirds of students receive contributions from parents, with 28 per cent getting regular amounts during the term and 8 per cent being given lump sums each term.
‘I’ll be in debt. but have a better chance at a career’
Advertisement
CATHERINE TAYLOR is £6,300 in debt even before she starts her four-year degree course in retail management at Bournemouth University.
Ms Taylor, 21, has a £3,000 loan for her tuition fees and a £3,305 student loan to cover her first year. “At least I will be entering university with as much support as possible,” she said. “I am hoping to earn extra money with a retail job and bar work. With these earnings, plus my student loan and a small allowance from my parents, I should have a budget of £600 per month to live off.
“Realistically, I’ll leave being about £12,000 in debt, which is quite a daunting prospect, but I know I will have a much better chance of climbing the career ladder with a degree under my belt. I have also chosen a course which will give me specific training in the field I want to work in and I definitely feel it is money well-invested.”