Huge Increase in Student Loans
04/04/08
Research out this week showed that students could see a huge increase in student loans. The current limit is £3000 and a study by the Higher Education Policy Institute suggested that this could result in further debt problems for students especially those who are from poorer backgrounds.
The report suggested that Universities may have to consider waiving any fees above this amount in order to not put off any possible students from poorer backgrounds. The report also suggested that it is difficult to say whether it was the £3000 top up fee which was introduced back in 2006 which had put off students from working class backgrounds from going to University.
The increase in taking out higher student loans could be as a result of the considerable rise in various University fees including tuition fees and the cost of paying back loans students are forced into taking out.
The Higher Education Minister Bill Rammell said that it was too early to discuss tuition fees for the future. He went on to say that "The Government has always been clear that there will be no change to the current arrangements until after a thorough independent review of the first three years of the variable fees regime.
"We are barely more than halfway through this period."
