Tuition fees- Value for money?

studentphil

The_One_Who wrote: »

If you are earning £10,000 a year then you won't be paying off any of your student loan since you are below the threshold. Also not being able to pay off your overdraft and card payments isn't the university's fault, it's your own.

Plus, £10k is not exactly a graduate salary; if you are earning that then you should be wondering where you went wrong and try to move into a better paying job.

True, but personal debt doesn't go away. I think many many graduates don't have a job and certainly not a nice 20k a year graduate one as the govt says they all do.

The_One_Who

Personal debt doesn't equal poverty though. And of course not everyone gets a nice 20k+ job as soon as they graduate, but if someone is willing to take a job (any job) then they should be able to find one until they can find something a bit better paying.

studentphil

The_One_Who wrote: »

Personal debt doesn't equal poverty though. And of course not everyone gets a nice 20k+ job as soon as they graduate, but if someone is willing to take a job (any job) then they should be able to find one until they can find something a bit better paying.

If you only earn 800 quid a month and you have to pay back 300 in loans and cards you are hardly rich.

DrFluffy

studentphil wrote: »

If you only earn 800 quid a month and you have to pay back 300 in loans and cards you are hardly rich.

That's WAY more than I have to live on, and I'm fairly comfortable...

roxalana

bestpud wrote: »

I have had a very different experience with a student counselling service so I guess it comes down to them having busy periods and just being snowed under. Non-priority students can have a wait of several weeks at peak times in some unis but even that is much better than the waiting lists for most NHS counselling.

I've just re-read your post - do you mean he has been waiting since March? If so, I'd say somthing has gone badly astray! Like they lost his details or something?

yep waiting since march - unfortunately as the person is an adult I cannot hassle them to hurry up and the person concerned doesn't feel able to...

poet123

As the parent of 2 uni students (both doing very academic courses) and with another son waiting in the wings... I think most courses could be condensed into 2 years maximum if the contact time was only marginally increased.

What also annoys intensely me is that the powers that be who made tuition fees payable all went throught the system when it was free........

melancholly

poet123 wrote: »

As the parent of 2 uni students (both doing very academic courses) and with another son waiting in the wings... I think most courses could be condensed into 2 years maximum if the contact time was only marginally increased.

What also annoys intensely me is that the powers that be who made tuition fees payable all went throught the system when it was free........

i think there is definitely an arguement that students 'mature' in their understanding of the course, in their ability to write effectively and communicate about difficult topics and in their ability to be independent and self motivated..... that takes a while (longer for some than others, granted!). often subjects require independent research or a dissertation in a final year that is only really possible after 2 years of learning basics. a lot of students struggle at university to *think* about their subject, after being trained to regurgitate facts whilst at school. that's the key element of a degree (or it should be! it seems to be about getting a 2:1 and becoming a 'consultant' these days! ).

i fully understand the anger of people who had a free university education making everyone else pay - my older sibling went through for free and i didn't..... frustrated doesn't even come close!

bestpud

melancholly wrote: »

i think there is definitely an arguement that students 'mature' in their understanding of the course, in their ability to write effectively and communicate about difficult topics and in their ability to be independent and self motivated..... that takes a while (longer for some than others, granted!). often subjects require independent research or a dissertation in a final year that is only really possible after 2 years of learning basics. a lot of students struggle at university to *think* about their subject, after being trained to regurgitate facts whilst at school. that's the key element of a degree (or it should be! it seems to be about getting a 2:1 and becoming a 'consultant' these days! ).

i fully understand the anger of people who had a free university education making everyone else pay - my older sibling went through for free and i didn't..... frustrated doesn't even come close!

I agree wholeheartedly with this. I'm in my third year now and it is just starting to fall into place - almost like it's become a way of thinking.

I know I would not have got to this point in two years.

Don't get me wrong, I'd have a degree, but I'd have done it by churning out assignments and not getting to grips with my subject. It's what uni is about for me.

Of course, most now see it as a stepping stone to work rather than learning as such which I guess was inevitable when they introduced fees...

bestpud

roxalana wrote: »

yep waiting since march - unfortunately as the person is an adult I cannot hassle them to hurry up and the person concerned doesn't feel able to...

I can't see why you can't contact the counsellors and say he still needs them but feels unable to contact them and check himself. Therefore you just want them to check he is still on the list?

Along the lines of 'my friend ... was put in the waiting list in March and is yet to hear from you. I don't need a reply form you but could I ask that you check he is still on the list as I am concerned about him and he feels unable to check with you himself.'

You won't need to talk about him and neither will they need to tell you if he is on the list (or even if he ever was). You would just be alerting them to a possible issue. No confidentialities broken. You could simply email or write to them?

adidas

I can certainly understand how people think that some courses are not value for money with regards to their contact time. I know final year arts students who have 3/4 hours a week contact time. But as has been said earlier you are subsidising libraries, tutor time and things like that. I believe that if you are motivated enough you can get a lot out of university. You can apply for jobs, get work experience and join societies to do things you might never have a chance to do.

Most people I know who have graduated have got great jobs now because they are motivated people. You can't expect to go to University and automatically get a job. Degrees are too common these days and you need to differentiate yourself from the crowd.