24th May 2010 9:00
By Blue Tutors
The Russell Group, which represents 20 of the UK’s top universities, has called for an increase in tuition fees for university students. The BBC have reported that a submission to Lord Browne’s funding review states how the current fees of £3,225 could be increased to £9,000, without any effect on the taxpayer.
Obviously the news has met with widespread criticism, particularly from students and bodies not concerned with funding. The UCU Lecturer’s Union claimed that the increase in tuition fees would be “the most regressive piece of education policy since the war“ which would “price a generation out of higher education“. Students have agreed, and expressed concerns about the levels of debt that they would leave university with – nearly £40,000 in some cases.
The Russell Group’s defence is that further education would still be free at the point of entry, and that rising tuition fees have not decreased the number of people applying to university in recent years. It’s claimed that without the tuition fee increase, the universities represented by the Russell Group will find it difficult to maintain their standards as leading educational institutions. It’s also been highlighted that it’s only right for students to repay their tuition fees if the degree they receive dramatically increases their potential salaries.