Once upon a time there were no university tuition fees for your first degree in the UK. But as higher education expanded, the ‘right’ to a free university education was inevitably called into question. As a consequence of these constraints, priorities were re-examined, and the Government decided graduates must contribute to the cost of their education. Where previously the government had paid to educate UK undergraduates, now the students would be liable (via a student loan) for their tuition fees. Tuition fees were capped at £3,000pa but in 2012 this is set for a 300% increase. Despite assurances that only elite institutions would dare to charge the maximum a far wider than expected collection of colleges has felt obliged to set fees at the new limit. The reason is they themselves have had their central government grants reduced.

Cutting funding to universities whilst giving them licence to increase charges was only likely to have one outcome: more student debt, as administrators naturally wished to avoid making lay-offs among university staffs. Exponential fees inflation is likely to have consequences beyond the anticipated changing of the student demographic. What, where and how people study will change also.

Top colleges are unlikely to alter much. Attending such places is seen as conferring a high chance of future success. Competition to climb aboard the gravy train will remain. Among regular universities and elsewhere in the market however, there will be big changes. The sector as a whole may contract, or conversely may grow, but the form and nature of the education offered is sure to adapt to new constraints and concerns.

Initially a new pragmatism is likely to develop among students, if they are treated as customers.
They will no longer ‘take-as-read’ the value of what they are buying. Will this course give me the skills to enable me, eventually, to pay for it?’ Will the demands and sacrifice of study ultimately translate to hard cash and career fulfilment?’ ‘Will the rewards be worth it, or will debt be too high a price to pay?’ There will be an uptick in applications for business and vocational courses, as students prioritise real-world skills.

With living costs on the rise and the job market stagnant, customers will look to study without losing the income from working. Large numbers will seek to study part-time or perhaps defer their studies until they have saved money and gained experience of work Courses such as the HND, which can be converted into a honours degree with further study, will become more attractive to those reluctant to put all their eggs in one basket.

Much cheaper, such courses can also be studied online, and will appeal to these more selective consumers. Instead of packing-in all their education at the beginning, when they’re often not best placed to appreciate it, people with begin to see education as continuous thread weaving through their working lives, with online courses likely to become the norm.

Future students will prioritise flexibility and cost-effectiveness, downgrading other supposed virtues such as ‘tradition’. How the institutions answer these new user-priorities will determine their ultimate success. Now distance learning courses are certain to answer the needs of many.