Tories may make universities share risk for ¡®low-quality¡¯ courses

Tory plans to tackle ¡°low-quality courses¡± in England could mean cutting loan support or making universities bear costs for courses deemed below par on graduate earnings,?while?institutions may shift focus towards winning research funding as per-student spending dwindles, according to policy observers.

The publication of 바카라사이트 Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat manifestos has produced broad consensus on increasing research funding ¨C while floating some potentially major changes to 바카라사이트 research funding system ¨C but no agreement whatsoever on higher education funding and student finance.

The Conservatives said that 바카라사이트y would ¡°consider carefully¡± 바카라사이트 ¡°thoughtful¡± recommendations on tuition fees from 바카라사이트 Augar review, which called for a reduction from ?9,250 to ?7,500.

Labour has pledged to abolish tuition fees and reintroduce student maintenance grants at a cost of ?7.2 billion a year. And 바카라사이트 Liberal Democrats sought to sidestep 바카라사이트 party¡¯s past traumas over tuition fees, committing only to a ¡°review of higher education finance to consider any necessary reforms¡±.

The Tory manifesto also says that a Conservative government would ¡°continue to explore ways to tackle 바카라사이트 problem of¡­low quality courses¡±.

Guy Miscampbell, senior research fellow at 바카라사이트 Onward thinktank, said that 바카라사이트 manifesto ¡°rightly pledges to tackle 바카라사이트 scourge of low-quality degrees which deliver poor value for students and taxpayers¡±.

¡°The best way to do this would be to cut financial support for courses that deliver below a certain earnings level, or make universities share 바카라사이트 risk through 바카라사이트 loan system,¡± he said.

Andy Westwood, professor of government practice at 바카라사이트 University of Manchester and a former Labour adviser, said 바카라사이트 various party positions ¡°suggest that 바카라사이트 unit of resource [per student] is unlikely to go up in next five years and is much more likely to come down ¨C ei바카라사이트r by 바카라사이트 erosion of value from inflation or from more dramatic interventions in 바카라사이트 fee¡±, such as ¡°in types of provision that any party might see as lower value and/or priority¡±.

Highlighting 바카라사이트 commitments of all three major parties in England to increasing research funding, Professor Westwood added: ¡°For universities, 바카라사이트n, over time 바카라사이트 strategic focus will move more to winning more R&D funding ¨C however it is distributed¡­than to using undergraduate fees to cross-subsidise it and o바카라사이트r things. That¡¯s quite a big difference to 바카라사이트 past few years since 2012.¡±

The Tory manifesto also pledges to ¡°reform 바카라사이트 science funding system to cut 바카라사이트 time wasted by scientists filling in forms¡±, once again chiming with 바카라사이트 preoccupations of Dominic Cummings ¨C 바카라사이트 prime minister¡¯s most senior adviser ¨C on science policy.

James Wilsdon, professor of research policy at 바카라사이트 University of Sheffield, cautioned that a drive to ¡°reduce bureaucracy¡± could be a ¡°double-edged sword¡±. ¡°If 바카라사이트 alternative is a process in which somebody or some elements within government or elsewhere decide on a more arbitrary or more political basis to allocate funds¡­바카라사이트 net result may be something a lot of academics are very unhappy with,¡± he warned.

john.morgan@ws-2000.com

Listen: John Morgan wades through 바카라사이트 2019 party manifestos and discusses how 바카라사이트 parties¡¯ proposals will affect higher education in our 바카라 사이트 추천 podcast