Thursday 9 December 2010

Tuition Fees



I've had some really intresting letters, emails and facebook messages about the reforms to Higher Education. The one thing that is worrying me however is that some younger students are being led to believe they need to find 9 grand up front before they can go to University. This is not the case at all.

Fact: No one going to uni will have to pay anything up front with
the new plans. You’ll only have to pay money back after you
graduate — and then only if you earn over £21,000 a year.

Fact: You don’t have to pay anything back until you start to make
over £21,000 a year — and even then, the monthly payments will be
linked to how much you’re earning to ensure they’re affordable.

Fact: Everyone will have to pay back less each month with our plans.
Most graduates will be £540 better off a year. Those graduates in the bottom 20% of
incomes will actually pay back less in total than they currently do.

Fact: Parents won’t have to pay any of their children’s fees.
The student pays for their tuition — and only once they’ve
graduated and are earning enough to be able to afford it.

Fact: We’re giving more assistance to poorer students,
increasing maintenance grants, insisting that universities
charging over £6,000 widen access, and setting up a new
£150 million National Scholarships Programme to get students
from disadvantaged backgrounds into top universities.