Uni fund

Hillwalker11

One of my sons has just finished paying his, but the repayments were slightly different as he lives and works abroad. However he was one of the lucky ones that was only paying the low fees and not the extortionate £9000 per annum. Our other son is still paying his, just missing the £9000 per annum by 1 year, He is a doctor and when he does locums etc. his salary increases so the SL payment increases. Some months he pays a lot back but within a year or so he will be finished as well. What has helped them is they were in the days of the low interest rates not like todays disgraceful 6% plus. They both have mortgages and the SL is not taken into account. I really feel for today's graduates, the amount they will be expected to pay back is extortionate.
Far better to save to help them on the property ladder than pay off the SL. Who knows with perhaps a different government in the future it may all be very different. What really makes me see red is the politicians that brought in the high loans and extortionate interest rates on them, all went through the University system for free!

Fireflyaway

svain wrote: »

personally, if i was in a similar situation, i would do everything to discourage university .... biggest waste of time and money for most people

It will be my daughter's choice but my personal feeling is only to go uni if you actually need the degree for your chosen field. I've seen so many young people with degrees they have never used and it's not furthered their career at all, just left them with debt and 3 years less experience in the workplace compared to counterparts of the same age.

Spendless

Fireflyaway wrote: »

It will be my daughter's choice but my personal feeling is only to go uni if you actually need the degree for your chosen field. I've seen so many young people with degrees they have never used and it's not furthered their career at all, just left them with debt and 3 years less experience in the workplace compared to counterparts of the same age.

I used to think this way but it ignores that the job market has changed. Some employers require a graduate nowadays. The job my DH started as as a 17yo with only O levels, now asks for people to have a degree.

The 4 people I can think of, who've gone to Uni in the last few years (Niece, Godson, workmates dc, family friend dc) only my Niece who is a teacher actually had to have the degree, but the others wouldn't have got their first f-time job offers without having them. Only 1 out of this 4 and it wasn't my Niece, went to a traditional Uni, the rest were at ex-polys.

I certainly do know someone who hasn't used their degree, going into low paid work afterwards that they could have done anyway, but that is down to them. They could have sort a graduate job after leaving Uni.

This subject regularly comes up on the discussion board and I know I'm not going to articulate this as well as a previous poster on there, but going to Uni, the academic side is only part of the experience. It is also about meeting and mixing with people from all walks of life, managing time and money, developing yourself, maturing. Yes, the argument will be we all managed this, but kids are far more 'spoon-fed' to a lot later age nowadays especially at Secondary school

My eldest should be off to Uni in Sept to do a vocational course at an ex poly. I've had my reservations, I was really unsure about where he wanted to study - until I visited the place myself (DH who'd taken DS to his interview had tried to assure me that my fears were unfounded) and it will develop him, open doors to him in a way that living at home with us for the next few years and finding a local job won't.

Primrose

Your child has a long way to go yet. I'd set up a special fund, put the money away every month without telling him/her and see what aspirations are nearer the time. The smart move these days for many vocations is to get an apprenticeship (commercial or some other kind) and get paid to study for a degree while yiu're actually earning.
We know a couple of people who are doing this and by the time they get their degree, they are going to have a qualification, money in the bank towards a house deposit and be iwithiut debt while their university attending chums are going to be wallowing in debt, and have no job experience as they try to get on the employment ladder.

Fireflyaway

I do agree with you Spendless. I'm job hunting myself these days and have seen so many more ads asking people to be educated to degree level ( so obviously doesn't have to be an actual degree) but I'm thinking this could almost be discrimination if the job doesn't require a degree of equivalent. If it's an entry level role doing something generic, why would you need a degree? What if like one family friend who springs to mind, you are a lovely person with great intelligence but chose not to pursue education? Or...a family member of mine who has many qualifications, degree and post grad qualifications but is short tempered and left uni with
no work experience? I know which one id want.