BRITISH UNIVERSITIES have recently raised concerns about the lack of funding for postgraduate degrees. Just as undergraduate students have had to face rises in the cost of their degrees, postgraduate fees have also risen by 11% this year.
The Vice-Chancellor of Southampton University, Professor Don Nutbeam, argued, “The changes to the funding of undergraduate education and the subsequent rise in undergraduate fees in England will inevitably lead to a rise in postgraduate fees.”
Universities such as Cardiff, Queen Mary and Exeter have spoken out about the issue, worried that increases in fees and a fall in the number of research grants and scholarships will mean fewer students will consider postgraduate study in the future. From 2010- 2011 the number of postgraduate students fell by 8,000.
Oxford University advises students to expect postgraduate degree fees to go up every year. However, scholarships are often available, with 62 per cent of graduate research students and 17 per cent of students on taught master’s degrees receiving full scholarship funding.
A spokesperson for the University told Cherwell, “Oxford University believes strongly that better provision for postgraduate funding is necessary to attract the best postgraduate students regardless of personal means – lack of funding is a barrier to widening access and puts the UK at a competitive disadvantage compared to many of our international peers.”
OUSU is also concerned about access to postgraduate funding. Chris Gray, OUSU Graduate Officer told Cherwell, “The ongoing crisis in access to postgraduate education in the UK is preventing a large number of potential students, including some of the brightest candidates, from enrolling.
“This problem needs a national solution as a further degree provides a huge career advantage for those who are wealthy enough to purchase one.
“This inequality will only intensify when those British students now paying £9,000 come to finish their undergraduate degrees, and are unwilling to burden themselves with even more debt.
“We all know people who have been unable to afford to continue their education due to high fees and the lack of funding. OUSU has been campaigning for years for increased postgraduate funding in Oxford, and last term the University responded with a new £100m campaign.”
The £100m campaign was announced at the annual oration to the University in October by the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Hamilton. The money raised will go towards improving funding for postgraduate degrees.
The Vice-Chancellor focused on the issue of access to postgraduate study during his oration. He stated, “The health of the UK’s research base depends critically on the supply of talented graduates.
“Research students in particular are the engine of groundbreaking experimentation, and just as they are drawn to working here with leading academics, so too are we able to recruit the best academics because of the quality of Oxford’s research students.”
He also cautioned about the effect of declining graduate study, commenting, “In addition, and no less valuably, they enhance the intellectual life of the collegiate University, and they provide a considerable proportion of the next generation of academic leadership both in the UK and internationally.”
Professor Nutbeam also expressed concern for the future. He claimed that without addressing the issues concerning postgraduate funding, “we will not meet the evolving future needs of our advanced economy.”
Oxford students have expressed concern about the issues surrounding postgraduate funding. Eve Worth, a graduate student at Brasenose, told Cherwell, “My parents can’t help me with money so this is a big issue for me. I think it is especially a big problem in the humanities. It is much harder to get funded for a master’s in humanities than a PhD, and it is much harder to get funded for anything in humanities than social sciences or science: I have not met a single humanities master’s student with funding at Oxford.”
She continued, “I am thinking of going to Australia or America to do my PhD because of the funding issues – and I am not the only first-class honours graduate I know considering this option. The UK is losing good students because of this funding debacle.”
Balliol student Rosanna Holdsworth also commented, “I’m thinking about postgraduate study. I’m waiting to see if the funding situation improves but it could be an issue for me in the future.”
Currently 50 per cent of all master’s degrees in the UK are undertaken by overseas students, who often pay considerably more than home students.
