|
Cost
of University reaches New High
(29/08/2006)
Sixth formers starting university this year can expect to pay
£33,512 for a three-year degree course, a rise of almost £5,000
on last year's projected figure, a new survey reports.
A large part of the rise was attributed to the increase in
tuition fees of up to £3,000 a year from next month.
The survey by NatWest Student Money Matters found that students
expected to graduate in 2009 with £14,779 of debt, an increase
of £1,099 on last year's projected figure for 2008. However,
while graduate debt continues to rise, NatWest said there were
signs that students were preparing to cut back on some of their
social pleasures.
The survey
also found students were increasingly relying on part-time jobs
to pay for their university life. A huge proportion (87 per
cent) of this year's intake believed they would have to take a
part-time job.
Forty-six per
cent of students rely on income from term time work to get by,
working an average of 14 hours a week. Students supplement their
income by an average of £71.32 a week.
Two thirds of
parents pay for their children's university education.
Twenty-eight per cent give regular amounts throughout the term.
Twenty-six per cent receive money from their parents when they
need it, eight per cent receive a lump sum at the beginning of
each term and four per cent receive a one-off amount when they
start university.
Despite
worries about the higher costs, 79 per cent of this year's
intake believed that going to university would help them with
their future prospects and 53 per cent wanted to train for a
specific career such as medicine or law.
Graduate debt
continued to rise, but at a slower pace than in previous years,
said the survey of 3,133 sixth formers, students and graduates.
Graduates now
leave university with £13,252 of debt, an increase of £612 on
last year. However, the percentage of graduates leaving
university with debts of more than £10,000 remained the same as
last year, at 62 per cent.
The average
starting salary for graduates has fallen from £14,090 last year
to £13,860 this year. However, more graduates (23 per cent) had
a job on graduation, a rise of five per cent on last year.
Despite lower
starting salaries, 56 per cent of graduates said they had got a
good job, 41 per cent were independent from their parents and 43
per cent claimed to have a healthier bank balance than they had
the year before (up from 28 per cent last year).
Fifty-seven
per cent were worried about the amount of debt they were in.
However, only 22 per cent (down from 29 per cent) had considered
packing it in to pursue a full-time job.
For sixth formers starting university this year, the biggest
concern was money (71 per cent). Financial worries continued to
outweigh concerns about the educational aspects of university by
11 per cent. Sixty per cent were concerned about exam failure.
As a parent, a good education is one of the few investments that
can be made for a child that will be of permanent benefit.
However, building this benefit will involve effective planning
and considerable outlay from either capital or income.
With foresight you can use an investment that will provide the
growth potential to give you part or even all of the money you
need to ensure you can provide the best education for your
children allowing them to concentrate on their studies rather
than worrying about money or working evening and weekends.
Candour
provides investment advice on various types of offshore school
and university savings plans. For further information on such
policies, just
click here
to provide us with your preferred contact details
and an overview of your requirements.
|
