University Guides May 20, 2010

• Coalition promises more university places – but no word yet on fees
  The Tory/Lib Dem government has pledged to increase the availability of university places in England, but insists it must await the findings of Lord Browne’s independent review before making any proonouncement on fees.

   

  The government has not yet said how many new university places it is prepared to fund.  As regards fees, it will judge its proposals against the need to ‘increase social mobility; take into account the impact on student debt; ensure a properly funded university sector; improve the quality of teaching; advance scholarship; and attract a higher proportion of students from disadvantaged backgrounds.’

   

  Nick Clegg’s party campaigned strongly on the promise to scrap fees altogether, but the Conservatives now say: “if the response of the government to Lord Browne’s review is one that the Liberal Democrats cannot accept; then arrangements will be made to enable Liberal Democrat MPs to abstain in any vote”.  

   

  The NUS today published an open letter to new Deputy Prime Minister Clegg asking for immediate clarification on the Government’s stance on the future of student top-up fees.

   

  However, the Russell Group of top universities has just recommended that fees should be uncapped - their second submission to the Browne review suggests, ‘an increase in graduate contributions is the only viable and fair way to secure the future of the UK’s world class higher education system and the universities’ vital role in educating a workforce for the global economy.’

  More on this story on the BBC website
• New institutions challenge the old guard’s dominance

  The position of “old” universities established before 1992 is continuing to be threatened by younger upstarts in the table compiled by The Complete University Guide in association with The Independent. Although Oxford remains at the top of the university pecking order for the third year running, with Cambridge and Imperial College London again in second and third place respectively, there has been movement in the middle ranks.

  And there have been noticeable shifts, too, in the fortunes of universities in the top 20. Lancaster, for example, has risen from 12th to eighth place in the 2011 league table because of an improvement in its student satisfaction score and because graduate prospects are better as shown in the numbers getting graduate jobs or undertaking further study six months after leaving university.

  “Lancaster gives students contact with some of the best teaching staff in the UK,” says its vice-chancellor, Professor Paul Wellings. “We have a bustling and newly transformed campus, and students love the sense of community.”

  The university has been working hard to improve the employability of its students, according to Professor Amanda Chetwynd, pro-vice-chancellor for colleges and the student experience. “We have put our centre for employment, enterprise and careers in our main square, right at the heart of the campus, which means it is in the students’ minds,” she says. “As a result, students come in to it a lot more than they used to.”

  Students are also being urged to start thinking very early in their degree courses about what they want to do when they graduate, and they are offered short periods of work experience over the summer or at Easter.  For the full article in The Independent >

• Textbookexchange.co.uk saves students from book store monopoly

  Students from universities across the UK are beginning to wake up to the extortionate prices book stores and publishers charge for new textbooks.

  Recent studies have shown that students use, on average, 12 different textbooks over their time at university which can cost upwards of £200. Savvy students have long attempted to side-step these costs using their library or buying used textbooks from their older peers. However, libraries only provide limited numbers of books, forcing students to wait in line and buying used was only possible when you had the right contacts in the year above.

  An entrepreneurial student from the London School of Economics saw these problems and created a solution that wrestles the expensive issue of textbooks into a smooth, stress-free, cheap one. He envisaged a website where students could buy and sell textbooks without being charged any commission. The idea is now a reality in the form of TextbookExchange.co.uk, which draws the interest of students who want to get a better deal on textbooks.

  Sanjay Dave, an LSE student from Dartmouth, plans to use TextbookExchange.co.uk. “As a law student, I spent almost £300 on books last year. I’ll definitely be buying online. I am not going to Waterstones. They don’t have too many used books,” he said. Thousand of students in the UK feel the same way, Textbook Exchange could not have come at a better time, with money on everybody’s mind in the current climate, students are looking for alternatives.

  “Students have always bought and sold used textbooks, but usually to people they already know and in a very informal way, what TextbookExchange.co.uk tries to do, is become the go-to place where a much wider selection of books is available. This means bigger savings for buyers and a larger audience for sellers.” Says Textbook Exchange founder, Janak Shah.

  Students are constantly looking for ways to supplement their student loan, selling textbooks on the exchange means that they are able to set their own prices, rather than having to accept ludicrously low offers from stores.

  A key feature of the exchange was making the service accessible to all and the site has been carefully molded around ease-of-use. “You enter what you have, or what you want and we’ll do the rest.” Janak Shah says. “We’ve also differentiated ourselves from the likes of Amazon and Ebay in that we don’t charge a fee or commission to those selling their books. Our service is completely free.”

  Although some texts are now available in electronic form, students still seem to prefer books in physical form, which means the future looks bright for TextbookExchange.co.uk .

• Top universities up in arms over Russell Group’s evidence on fees

  Angry students from 20 leading universities are demanding that the Russell Group reveal evidence it has submitted to the government’s review of tuition fees, which the Group has so far refused to do. 

  Students say they do not see why the views of the influential Russell Group should not be made public, alongside the views of other university groups which have already been published.

  Attempts by students from Oxford University to use freedom of information requests to force the publication of the Russell Group’s submission were rejected by the government.

  Emmanuel Akpan-Inwang fom the student’s union at the London School of Economics said it was ‘completely unacceptable’ that evidence from their universities that so directly impacts on students was being kept hidden.

  However, the Russell Group is rejecting any claim of secrecy, saying that the submission to the fees review was always intended as part of a wider report on student funding which will be published in the next few weeks - it does not want documents to be seen ‘out of context’.

  The students have drawn up a formal protest letter which asks the Russell Group to publish its evidence immediately and to give a firm date for the publication of its full report.

  More on this story from the BBC website

• Call for tax breaks for graduate recruiters, as number of applicants doubles
  High-profile employers are more than ever inundated with applicants for graduate schemes and apprenticeships – British Gas revealed last week that it received more than 65,000 applications for 600 schemes, that is about twice as many as usual.

   

  The employment magazine, Personnel Today reports that mobile phone operator Vodafone also had over 3,000 applicants for the 50 places on its graduate scheme, launched last year, while retailer Debenhams received 2,000 applications for the 25 graduate trainee places available this year, from advertising only on its own website and graduate career websites.

  The latest Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR) survey into the graduate recruitment market revealed that there are, on average, 48 applications for every position.  The AGR has been lobbying government to devise tax breaks for employers who up their intake of graduate recruits.

  The news comes as the latest figures on youth unemployment have been released at 929,000 – and would have hit exactly 1m without the 71,000 quarterly jump in student numbers.

  More information on this and related stories from Personnel Today website.

• Kaplan Open Learning

  Many want to take advantage of higher education offerings but may have difficulty getting to do so. Many prospective students find themselves working full time or part time jobs with difficulty fitting courses into their busy day. For those wanting to obtain an education but have busy schedules, have some options available to them today. The internet has made many tasks accessible online. Education is one of these. Kaplan Open Learning offers numerous degrees with easy to access adult education courses for working adults. This comes as a spur to provide more and more of the workforce within the United Kingdom with the opportunity to participate in higher learning.

  Kaplan Open Learning is affiliated with the University of Essex. Two types of degrees can earned at Kaplan Open Learning. These include university foundation degrees or the more prestigious Honours Degree. Working towards a foundation degree is ideal for those working full time or part time jobs. The foundation degree programs offer a great deal of flexibility. This can provide you with the means to obtain a job promotion or even change careers. You may also use your new degree to begin a business to be your own boss.

  In order to participate in Kaplan Open Learning courses, you do not need to have levels or similar qualifications. Kaplan Open Learning is unique as it considers what kind of work experiences you have and considers this. In order to take Kaplan courses, a student only needs to have access to the internet. When you decide upon the degree you want to work towards, Kaplan will provide you with a flexible program of study. Not only do these provide flexibility to their students but Kaplan also has a host of tutoring experts. These people provide assistance to students.

  When you enrol in Kaplan Open Learning, you are not only a student of Kaplan but also with Kaplan’s affiliate, the University of Essex. The university oversees the quality of the education obtained at Kaplan Open Learning. Kaplan Open Learning has various programs across the world and this long experience helps contribute to their award winning programs.

• University Open Days – why they are not to be missed
  Students in Year 12 (lower sixth) who are thinking of choosing their university for next year, or those who in year 13 who haven’t applied pre-A Level this year, there is clear advice from teachers and universities alike  -  make time to go to the Open Days! 

   

   

  Most universities have excellent websites and prospectuses and of course the Complete University Guide will give you the latest league tables and profiles, but for helping you make the final decision there’s nothing to  beat going to the campus and taking a look at the facilities and accommodation for yourself, talking to current undergraduates and tutors, checking out the surrounding town or countryside.

   

  Mandy Firth, head of undergraduate recruitment at Keele University, believes that an open day can also help prospective students to make the final choice of degree they want to do.

  “We encourage students to book in advance so they can get their hands on a programme and make a plan to get the most out of the day. There are a lot of things going on and people need to know what they want to ask about.  It’s probably best to come up with a list of questions beforehand and to know who to talk to.”

   

  Nottingham University events officer Jenny Wardrop also thinks that a pre-application open day is good for people in Year 12 or 13 who want to narrow down their choices. Nottingham’s June and September weekends will each attract 20,000 visitors and it runs eight more mini “campus tour days” throughout the year.

   

  Charles Elder, Bournemouth University’s press manager agrees: ”Picking your university is about getting a gut feeling by talking to staff and students, and seeing if you’re going to gel. This is your chance to look behind the scenes.”

   

  A full schedule of university open days is available on the Open Day website, and you can see more about open days on the Independent online
• Students and Debt

  At the end of three years at University, the average student in England is £20,000 in debt and many can add a significant sum on top of that. These numbers could sky rocket in the coming years, with some politicians considering raising top-up fees even further, meaning students could be saddled with £50,000 of debt or more for just an undergraduate course.

  For many people, this is a reason not to go to University. £20,000 for three years and a qualification, is it really worth it?

  That question is a little difficult to answer, the government would say yes very quickly as it’s been trying to get more students to go to university for decades and so far has succeeded admirably. The best advice should be simply, do you want to go? If so, go, if you’re not sure, what do you want to do? If it’s something that will almost certainly require a degree, you should go, if it’s not and you don’t want to go, then don’t.

  The important thing to remember is that the debt that comes as part of a student loan is not like personal loans that you might get from a bank. Of course you have to pay it back, but the interest rate is not particularly high and the government is never going to be knocking on your door asking for the money back and you’re never going to be credit blacklisted if you don’t pay it (although, it should be remembered, not paying isn’t really an option as it’s usually taken directly from your payslip).

  That’s not to say that the debt should be taken lightly, far from it, but it’s not yet at such astronomical levels where it should be considered a reason not to go. Many surveys have found that the average graduate earns a lot more than £20,000 which is more than the average person who didn’t go to University, though there are admittedly a number of factors involved that don’t necessarily include simply having a degree.

  University is a financial burden, and often quite a financial stress, particularly when it comes towards the end of term and the student loan is beginning to wear out. If you have a good student account, however (check out Santander for very competitive student bank accounts) your finances shouldn’t be too much of a concern providing you’re careful.

• Getting the Right Student Account

  One of the most important things that anyone can do when preparing for university is select the right student account. With just about every major bank offering a different option, the challenge is selecting the right one for you, so what should you look for?

  1. Probably the most important element of any student account is an interest free overdraft. Most students drop into the overdraft at one time or another and it’s a necessity that you don’t get charged for it. 

  2. Overdraft size. Getting the right size of overdraft is a balancing act, whilst it’s useful to have more safety net if you do have to use it, having thousands of pounds of spare capacity can be enticing. Also, remember that at some stage you’re going to have to pay off that overdraft, so you don’t want to be mired in it too deeply.

  3. Internet access is absolutely vital. Most students live their lives on the internet and it’s a lot easier to manage your ingoing’s and outgoings if you set up for internet banking, it’s not absolutely necessary, but it is a good idea.

  4. Make sure that you know where your nearest branch is. If you end up getting an account with a regional bank and then go to another part of the country, it can be a disadvantage not having a branch nearby, especially if you think you may need to discuss things like reaching the bottom of your overdraft.

  5. Interest rate. Very few good student accounts offer you excellent interest rates, mostly because these sorts of accounts are more like conventional savings accounts and not like student accounts so you may have to pay more for your overdraft. Still, any interest that you can earn is a bonus, so it should be a consideration.

  6. Optional extras, most banks offer something to sweeten the deal like music vouchers, railcards or a little bit of additional cash. If you really can’t choose between two accounts, pick on the strength of the additional bits and pieces that they offer.

  A good student account is vital to managing your finances at University. Make sure that you look at more than just a couple of banks, and it’s definitely worth taking a look at Santander’s student account if you want a benchmark to work against (visit their site for more on Santander’s current accounts). It may take a little time to find the right account, but it will definitely prove to be time well spent.

• Student vote is wooed by the three main parties
  As the election looms, what are the three main political parties offering for students and higher education generally? 

   

  At the recent National Union of Students conference, the newly popular Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg asked students to ‘shout loud’ for what they wanted.  He said the plans to lift the cap on tuition fees was ‘wrong’ and his party’s manifesto would phase out tuition fees over the next six years, while Tory leader David Cameron said ‘top-up fees have to stay’ but promised an ‘early replayment bonus’ on student loans as well as other benefits.

   

  Gordon Brown made no mention of fees but confirmed that Labour would offer 20,000 extra university places this year and said they have always fought for fairness – he told NUS members he would spend ‘every waking hour fighting for your future.’

   

  Students unions still say politicians are “hiding behind” a review, due to report after the election, to avoid questions on university funding and student fees.  The new incoming president of the NUS, Aaron Porter, said he was disappointed by the lack of open debate.

  The National Union of Students is keen to mobilise student voters over the issue of fees, particularly in constituencies with a large student population. They have asked candidates to pledge not to vote for an increase in tuition fees - so far 800 candidates have signed up.

  “Come polling day any candidate who hides behind the review and refuses to come clean on their position on tuition fees will be punished at the ballot box,” said Mr Porter. Current NUS President Wes Streeting agreed: “We are determined to hold parliamentary candidates to account, and help students in every constituency to understand which of those candidates is prepared to back student interests – on the record, and on a clear promise.”

  More details on this story from the BBC website and also from the NUS