Universities would struggle to provide a “world-class education” if tuition fees were cut, higher education bosses have warned.
Sector leaders warned that while cutting fees may seem like an “easy political solution”, the gap in funding it would create would need to be plugged by other sources, otherwise higher education will be put in jeopardy.
The warning comes ahead of the Government’s long-awaited review of university funding, expected to be announced at the start of next week.
It is likely the review will look at issues such as cutting or freezing tuition fees – which cost up to £9,250 a year at English universities – as well as interest rates on loan repayments, which stand at up to 6.1%.
It could also look at areas such as part-time study and living costs.
Tuition fees at Cambridge University are £9,250 a year (Nick Ansell/PA)
The review, pledged by Theresa May last autumn, comes amid growing debate about university finance, including student debt and whether students are getting value for money.
The debate was initially sparked in part by a Labour Party election pledge to scrap tuition fees for future students.
Alistair Jarvis, chief executive of vice-chancellors’ group Universities UK, sounded a warning bell over the impact of a move to cut fees.
“A cut in tuition fees may seem like an easy political solution, but it would see universities in England struggle to provide students with the world-class education they currently enjoy.
“Unless a cut to fees is met in full from other funding sources, we risk returning to a system where courses are seriously underfunded or the number of places capped.
“That would be bad for graduate skills and the economy, for social mobility and for student choice.”
He added: “Our universities offer a world-renowned quality of education which depends on having stable and sustainable funding. This should not be put in jeopardy.”
Mr Jarvis also argued that tuition fees and funding need to be “better understood” and “feel fairer to students”.
Meanwhile, the leaders of the UK’s top universities warned that finding the right balance on tuition fees and university finance is likely to mean a “series of difficult trade-offs”.
- Fees of up to £9,250 a year
- Interest rates on loan repayments up to 6.1%
A spokesman for the Russell Group, which represents 24 of the UK’s most selective universities, said: “Any changes to the current funding model need to be fair and affordable to students, while still meeting the needs of taxpayers and universities in providing students with a high-quality education and experience.
“Finding the right balance is likely to involve making a series of difficult trade-offs.”
Announcing the review at the last Conservative Party conference, the Prime Minister acknowledged that the cost of higher education is a worry.
She pledged to freeze maximum tuition fees – which stand at £9,250 a year – and raise the repayment threshold from £21,000 to £25,000, while the Government “looks again” at funding and student finance.
Sally Hunt, general secretary of the University and College Union (UCU), said there needs to be “a proper debate with education as a public good at its heart”.
She added: “If this review is to serve any purpose then it needs to be radical and explore genuine alternatives to the current system, not just tinker at the edges of the current failed system.”
Dr Greg Walker, chief executive of universities group MillionPlus, said: “A cut in tuition fees without a plan to replace that lost income would risk the world-leading reputation of Britain’s higher education sector and lead to major job losses in many regions of England.”