Student finance: Stop calling student loans a loan

By David Ellis. Martin Lewis, founder of moneysavingexpert.com, says associations with the word 'loan' are scaring many teenagers away from university – this shouldn't be the case, a student loan is like no other, says David Ellis. Reading Martin Lewis’ admirable call to more appropriately name the Student Loan,before watching a flurry of misunderstandings unfurl in the comments and on Twitter, I can recognise that changing a name may seem deceitful – it comes across as exactly the kind of thing a politician would do (‘New’ Labour, anyone?). Maybe this is why David Willetts didn’t offer to change the language of student finance in June, when challenged by Mary Curnock Cook, chief executive of UCAS, during a debate at the start of Universities Week. However, I sincerely hope that better labelling of student loans will happen soon. Read more...