The majority of students experienced better teaching at school than at university, new research has found.
The study, commissioned by the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference to mark the start of their annual meeting, asked 1,000 students about their university and secondary school experiences.
The findings raise concerns that some students feel university is not living up to their expectations, with some rating the teaching they received at school more highly.
More than half (52 per cent) of those questioned rate the teaching they received at school more highly than that at university. The difference was more noticeable among privately educated pupils, with 61 per cent saying their school teaching was better.
Half of the students questioned had attended state schools and the other half were educated privately.
Worryingly, the majority of final year students do not believe tuition fees of up to £9,000 are value for money, the figures suggest.
Alicia, a third year student studying English Literature, said she was shocked at the amount of contact hours when she started university.
"I went from having seven hours a day at school to six hours a week at university. I realise university is mainly about working by yourself, but it is quite ridiculous.
"We are offered ten minutes a week of face-to-face time with tutors but these sessions get booked up weeks in advance. No way would I pay £9,000 for that."
The study shows many students currently at university would be unhappy paying the maximum £9,000 fees - which come into force next year.
A recent breakdown of tuition fees by a newspaper revealed lectures could cost as much as £50 each.
A mere 14 per cent of the final year students questioned in the survey said they would have been happy with the value for money if they had been charged a maximum of £9,000 per year, with 72 per cent saying they would have been unhappy.
In comparison, almost two thirds (62 per cent) of the students, who paid around £3,000 per year for their degrees under the current system, said their university course was good value.
Nicola Dandridge, chief executive of Universities UK, said: "It is quite nonsensical to try to compare school teaching with university teaching as they are entirely different things.
"We agree that high-quality teaching in schools can have a profound effect on whether a young person enters higher education. Nonetheless, the different but complementary roles played by the schools and universities do need to be recognised."