The £6,848 question for postgraduate students

As student debts mount, and with the loans system in need of reform, can targeted funding for postgraduate study increase social mobility?


Powered by Guardian.co.ukThis article titled “The £6,848 question for postgraduate students” was written by Seb Murray, for theguardian.com on Friday 10th November 2017 16.33 UTC

The benefits enjoyed by those with postgraduate qualifications are becoming increasingly evident. Research published by the Sutton Trust education charity suggests that, in Britain, they will earn on average 14% more than those with an undergraduate degree alone. They are also 15% more likely to be employed full-time after six months, according to the Higher Education Statistics Agency, and more likely to use skills acquired during their education in their work.

But with undergraduate tuition fees of up to £9,250 a year, mounting debt could deter potential students into postgraduate study, which raises questions about the economic barriers some face. Around three-quarters of those on taught postgraduate programmes in the UKwhich cost on average £6,848 – are self-funded, with many relying on financial support from their families to pay their fees.

“It is no longer enough to have a bog-standard bachelor’s degree to distinguish yourself from the crowd. Postgraduate qualifications are often essential in many fields, such as journalism, and they command a wage premium – £200,000 more than an undergraduate degree alone, over a lifetime,” says Lee Elliot Major, chief executive of the Sutton Trust.

“But with undergraduates racking up average debts of £50,000, those who do not come from privileged backgrounds, and cannot rely on the bank of mum and dad, are prevented from pursuing postgraduate education – the new frontier of social mobility.”

Many universities are now in a multi-million-pound drive to equalise opportunity. In 2017/18, Russell Group universities will spend more than £250m on scholarships, bursaries, fee waivers and outreach to widen participation in education.

However, pleas for a means-tested postgraduate loan system – in which funding is prioritised for those most in need of it – are often ignored, says Elliot Major. “Rather than levelling the playing field, financial aid is too often a vehicle for people who are already advantaged to cement their place in society,” he says.

The University of Sheffield provides postgraduate students from under-represented groups with scholarships of £10,000, with awards based on criteria such as whether they are from deprived areas. Last year, the university awarded 154 scholarships – worth more than £1.5m. “It is vitally important that we tear down financial barriers to postgraduate study and widen access to people from all backgrounds,” says Wyn Morgan, vice-president for education at Sheffield. “Education is key to improving social mobility. A postgraduate degree can provide a huge boost to your employment prospects.”

Scott Walker, 25, thought he could not afford a postgraduate qualification, being from a low-income family. But a scholarship from the University of Warwick – which awards 100 scholarships of £5,000 to under-represented groups each year – paid for him to study an MSc in advanced mechanical engineering.

Since graduating last year, Walker has received job offers from leading postgraduate employers including Jaguar Land Rover and Aston Martin, where he now works as a senior quality engineer. He says the funding was “fundamental to my success”.

Postgraduate funding: loans, fees, scholarships

  • From 2016/17, non-means-tested loans of up to £10,000 have been available to postgraduate students living in England and some EU students taking master’s courses at UK universities. These are subject to an interest rate of the RPI (retail price index) plus 3%. Repayments are set at 6% of any income over £21,000.
  • The government will be introducing loans of up to £25,000 for doctoral students from 2018/19.
  • Around 35% [pdf] of postgraduate students have used their own savings to pay towards their fees. About 22% used formal loans, 19% had loans from family or friends, and around 10% used fee waivers such as scholarships.
  • Young people from working-class backgrounds are only 28% as likely to obtain a postgraduate degree as their peers from privileged upbringings, with high fees deterring many.

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