If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
The Blog
We really don't want this generation to end up with big debts around their necks and jobs they don't enjoy. We need to provide them with the tools and the confidence to make informed decisions that will get them off to a good start.
Higher Education is in the midst of a major transition, and universities (especially modern universities) are working hard to adapt by developing new business models.
The Coalition government has done something special with Higher Education. It's time to look for a new system to fund our universities. A graduate tax is the only viable option.
Over my two years as a Sabbatical at City College Norwich, I have worked closely with all these groups (and a few more you haven't mentioned) to make sure they are getting as much out of their Students' Union as possible. (Although I must add CCN doesn't have any post-grads). We are also one of the first Students' Unions to have a full time sabbatical Apprentice as our Deputy President.
22% of the first cohort for the New College of Humanities (NCH) will hail from state school backgrounds, a number far lower than any other UK university. The new private college offers degrees conferred by the University of London in English, history, philosophy, economics and law. All for the unreasonable price tag of £18,000. Per year.
A few weeks ago, many readers might have seen articles warning of a 'squeezed middle' of English universities, who would struggle to attract the best performing students.
In Britain, our student political battles, in comparison, can feel a little boring. Stepping outside and engaging with other students internationally is healthy - the NUS is an organisation with a global reach. My time in Libya reminded me that students have always been the courageous force of change - which is precisely why Gadaffi targeted them.
So a political blogger had been venting at the "hard left" and specifically me on the The Huffington Post. Oddly enough the author seems to think tha...
It must be hard being in the Liberal Democrats. Yes, I said it. I went there. But before you assume that I've donned a yellow tie, let me assure you that my favourite way of describing them is as not so much a political party, but more a terrible surprise party.
In my final year at Oxford, I lived in a house of six blokes. Me, two Etonians, one from a state school in Watford, one from a Comprehensive in Newcastle and one from a private school on the Isle of Wight. All very different people, with very different backgrounds.
We've got a serious problem in our higher education system and its scale is not to be underestimated. The uncomfortable fact is that if you are educated at an independent school you are 22 times more likely to study at a highly selective university than your state school counterpart in receipt of 'free school meals'. Oh yes, and this rises to 55 times for Oxbridge.
The average person making an early repayment is aged 25 and earns less than £20,000 a year. The average repayment is £900. These people repay because they don't like being in debt. Once in a while they find that they have £500 or £1000 spare and decide to pay off some of their student debt. To penalise these people would be bizarre.
For too long now I have sat back and stayed quiet whilst those around me label our generation as one that is lost, something that I struggle to comprehend. Rather, this global recession, which has affected us all and continues to do so, has made this generation stronger and more resilient than ever before.
It may still be a typical scene of university life - rows of students in front of a lecturer and Powerpoint slides - but it's also one many people want to see less of, including employers and the students themselves.
Our analysis reveals that it is early intervention services - the ones the government are trying to promote - that are suffering the most severe cutbacks. This is dangerous short-sighted budgeting.
What makes a nation great? Traditionally, military power has undoubtedly been a part of it. Much ancient history is almost the story of the rise and ...
