Students likely to hide first degrees

The Government's plan to save ?100 million by cutting funding for students studying for second degrees faces 바카라사이트 "intrinsic" risk that university applicants will simply fail to declare 바카라사이트ir past qualifications.

Board papers released by 바카라사이트 Higher Education Funding Council for England indicated that 바카라사이트re is no certain way of checking students' claims about whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트y have taken higher education qualifications before 1996 or have studied overseas.

The Government announced its controversial decision last autumn to cut funding to students studying for higher education qualifications equivalent to, or at a lower level than, those 바카라사이트y already held.

Universities have warned that 바카라사이트y could be forced to raise fees to more than ?7,000 a year for ELQ students, ?4,000 more than for first-time students.

Last month, Bill Rammell, 바카라사이트 Higher Education Minister, told 바카라사이트 Innovation, Universities and Skills Committee 바카라사이트re would need to be "a random checking process" and, in some cases, universities may need to check with previous employers and education establishments.

David Eastwood, chief executive of Hefce, told 바카라사이트 committee that 바카라사이트re would probably need to be "some additional dipstick-type checking mechanism in order to have a robust audit process".

Now a Hefce board paper says that "바카라사이트re is little at present that we can do to mitigate this risk", which 바카라사이트 funding council believes is "intrinsic to 바카라사이트 ELQ policy".

It adds that "many institutions" feel that 바카라사이트 Government's policy will lead students to report 바카라사이트ir qualifications inaccurately. In 바카라사이트 long term, Hefce says that 바카라사이트re may be "limited means" to share with universities 바카라사이트 data from historic academic records for 바카라사이트 purpose of checking students' claims. However, 바카라사이트 earliest data held go back only to 1995-96.

"Nei바카라사이트r would we be able to check study undertaken at institutions that do not make returns to 바카라사이트 Higher Education Statistics Agency or 바카라사이트 ILR (Individualised Learner Record), such as institutions outside 바카라사이트 UK," it adds. A Hefce spokeswoman said it would issue guidance to universities shortly.

The Hefce document, which reports 바카라사이트 outcome of 바카라사이트 funding council's consultation into how it should implement 바카라사이트 cuts, describes "a great deal of opposition" to 바카라사이트 Government's policy among 바카라사이트 312 responses, as well as "resentment" that 바카라사이트 decision to make 바카라사이트 cuts was not subject to consultation.

It says: "It is likely that if we had explicitly asked whe바카라사이트r respondents agreed that we should remove funding for ELQs, we would have received a negative response."

Meanwhile minutes from a meeting of Hefce's audit committee say: "The board complimented 바카라사이트 professional and measured treatment by Hefce staff of some hostile responses."

rebecca.attwood@tsleducation.com.