Private universities and colleges Unlike many other countries, Britain has no real tradition of private universities with the power to award their own degrees. For a long time there was only one, the University of Buckingham, but the market now includes such institutions as BPP University College, ifs School of Finance and The College of Law. In contrast to state universities, they are not subject to the £9,000 a year tuition-fee cap, and can charge whatever they wish. Full-time students attending them are eligible for state loans to cover tuition fees and living costs, but the loans are capped at £6,000 per year. Having pioneered accelerated programmes that shoehorn the content of a three-year degree into two, private universities can still offer good value for money. Examples include the LLB (Hons) law degrees offered by BPP University College and The College of Law, for which fees are £6,000 and £9,000 a year respectively.
Sarah Hutchinson, board member for business development at The College of Law, says: “You don’t lose any of the rigour or content — we simply follow a school timetable rather than a university one, so you get only six weeks off in the summer instead of four months.”
The College of Law’s two-year LLB demonstrates another advantage of specialised private universities: the course is professional in its outlook and geared to the realities of the workplace. “It covers all the key intellectual skills and knowledge as it’s a qualifying law degree,” says Hutchinson. “But it’s totally practical, too; we look at real-life case studies and transactions rather than 17th-century case law.”
Britain has many other, private higher-education providers that do not have the power to award their own UK degrees. These include satellite campuses of foreign universities, some of which are part of Ucas, and countless small colleges that offer the external degree programmes of established universities, such as the University of London International Programmes. If considering these, it is vital to research the college’s reputation and to find out who will be validating the degree and, if it is not a UK university, whether the qualification is widely accepted.
Further education colleges One in eight degree students in the UK attends further-education colleges rather than universities and there are sound reasons for doing so, according to Lynne Sedgmore, executive director of the 157 Group, which represents some of the largest and most successful further education (FE) colleges. “You tend to get smaller group sizes and a higher number of contact hours,” she says.
“The programmes frequently have closer links with employers, and fees are not as high as at many universities, so the courses represent value for money. But they’re validated by a university, so you get a proper, fully fledged degree.”
Another advantage is that it is often possible to study at a local FE college and live at home. With the lower tuition fees taken into account, the savings can be considerable. For instance, a BA (Hons) in Business Administration at Warwickshire College, validated by the University of Gloucestershire, has fees of £5,500 a year, while the University of Gloucestershire charges £8,250 a year for undergraduate degree courses. In some cases, students at FE colleges apply for a foundation degree, which is equivalent to the first two years of a normal honours degree, and then “top up” with a final year at the college or at the university that is validating the qualification.
Part-time degrees Studying part-time offers the chance to hold down a substantial job while you study — potentially allowing you to graduate with lower debts, and with a head start on your peers in the workplace. But it’s a route that requires dedication and a willingness to sacrifice much of the social life you’d enjoy as a full-time student. One of the best-regarded institutions geared to part-time study is Birkbeck, University of London. Its degree courses are taught in the evening and its key intake is mature students in full-time employment. In recent years, it has also begun to attract increasing numbers of school-leavers. Prof David Latchman, master of Birkbeck, says: “When we joined Ucas in 2010-11, we had 200 applicants aged 20 or younger. In 2011-12 it was 347, and this year we’ve had 917.
“Besides our standard four-year evening degree, we’ve now introduced accelerated, flexible programmes where you can do a University of London degree in the standard three years, working at a job during the day and studying in the evening.”
From this September, new part-time students are eligible for a yearly tuition-fee loan of up to £6,750 at a state university, or £4,500 at a private institution, as long as their course represents at least 25 per cent of a full-time degree each year (that is, they take four years or less to cover the equivalent content of a year’s full-time study). However, as a part-time student you’re not eligible for loans or grants to cover living expenses and, depending on your age and the number of course hours per week, you may not qualify for council tax exemption (see www.direct.gov.uk for the current rules). Four years after commencement of the course, you’ll also have to start repaying your tuition loans if you’re earning more than £21,000pa, whether you have completed your studies or not.
Studying overseas Rising tuition fees, coupled with an increase in courses taught in English at foreign universities, are driving more students to consider studying overseas. But going abroad is still the choice of a small minority (about 1.7 per cent of all degree students) and one that must be planned and researched well in advance.
- Find out the top 10 mainland European countries offering English-taught degrees here Doing a degree in another EU country can be cost-effective:tuition fees are often lower than in Britain, if payable at all. UK citizens must not be charged more than the country’s student nationals for tuition, and must be granted the same financial aid towards it. However, there is no corresponding right to assistance with living costs, and you won’t be eligible for UK student loans or grants. Beyond the EU, you will likely have to finance the enterprise yourself, unless you are lucky enough to bag one of the few scholarships available. For more on international study, visit the UK Council for International Student Affairs website (www.ukcisa.org.uk), which has links to country-specific sources of further information.
Emmanuelle Barbara, avocate, spécialiste en droit social chez August & Debouzy, présente en vidéo sa tribune publiée dans Le Figaro, deuxième de la série "15 propositions pour la France".
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