Tuition Fees: Current situation
8 March 2011
Over the last few months Leighton Andrews, the Welsh Assembly Minister for Children, Education & Lifelong Learning, has issued a number of statements on the future of tuition fees for Welsh undergraduates and the implications for Welsh universities.
This Q&A aims to update staff on the current situation and explain the various steps the national policy needs to go through before the University is able to announce its own tuition fee levels.
Why have Welsh universities had to review their fee arrangements?
Public sector budget pressures and the knock-on effects of a new fee regime announced for England meant that a response had to be sought in Wales which would ensure that universities have sufficient resources to deliver learning and teaching at the high standards students rightly demand.
What are the proposed tuition fee arrangements for Wales?
The Welsh Assembly Government has proposed that in Wales the basic tuition fee level will rise to £4,000 per annum in real terms for UK/EU undergraduates from Autumn 2012. In some instances institutions will be able to charge up to £9,000 for their courses providing they can demonstrate, via a fee plan a commitment to widening access and other strategic objectives.
Are the fee arrangement proposals standard across the UK?
No. The fee proposals are not standard across the UK.
England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales each have separate fee arrangements. In England, universities will have a basic tuition fee level of £6,000 and in some instances be able to charge up to £9,000. As in Wales, English universities wishing to charge above the basic fee level will have to produce plans which satisfy certain requirements in relation to widening access and inclusion. The requirements and approval processes for English universities will be set by the Office for Fair Access (OFFA) and will not necessarily be the same as the requirement and approval processes set in Wales by the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales (HEFCW).
Reviews of the systems in Scotland and Northern Ireland are currently underway.
When will the new fee arrangement be put in place in Wales?
If the necessary legislation is passed by the end of March 2011, the revised arrangements for higher education funding and statutory student support in Wales will be put in place for students commencing new courses of study on or after 1 September 2012.
The new system will only apply to new students. Undergraduates who have already commenced their studies prior to 1 September 2012 will continue and complete their courses under their existing fee regime.
So how will this affect students from Wales?
The fees for Welsh domiciled students will be met from two sources.
As now, Welsh domiciled students will be liable for the first £3,290 of their fees – this cost will be met via a loan from the Student Loan Company. Students will only start repaying this loan once they are earning more than £21,000. The balance of the fee over and above the £3,290 will be met by the Welsh Assembly Government via a tuition fee grant.
The tuition fee grant will be paid for all Welsh-domiciled students. It applies not only to those students studying in Wales but to all Welsh-domiciled students wherever such students are studying in the UK. The tuition fee grant will not be repayable and will not be means tested.
NB: £3,290 is the current (2010-11) undergraduate tuition fee – this figure is expected to be adjusted in line with inflation
What about students from elsewhere in the UK?
Students from other parts of the UK will be governed by the fee arrangements decided by their own governments.
Students from England, Scotland or Northern Ireland studying at Welsh universities will not receive the Welsh Assembly Government’s tuition fee grant and it is anticipated that such students will need to meet the cost of their tuition fees in full via a loan from the Student Loan Company
Will students studying part-time have to pay fees up front as under the current system?
From 2012, it is expected that part-time students will be able to access a tuition fee loan depending on the level of intensity of their course. Further details are awaited on this issue.
What support will be available for students?
Cardiff University is committed to helping the brightest and the best students realise their academic ambitions regardless of financial situation, and has always looked to provide scholarships and bursaries where possible. We are not yet in a position to know what forms of financial aid will be in place to attract and support the most able, but it will form part of our fee plan. We will make this information public as soon as we are able.
Will there continue to be a limit to the number of students we can recruit?
Yes, we expect the current controls on home and EU full-time undergraduate new entrants to continue. If we exceed the cap, we will be penalised financially to cover the costs of over-recruitment. Schools' full-time undergraduate intake levels already take account of this cap.
When will we know more about Cardiff University’s own fee levels?
We are currently discussing the implications of the new fee arrangements and will come to a decision on the appropriate level of fees to be charged once the full implications of the new funding regime become clearer over the next few weeks. After this, we will be able to better consider what level of UK/EU undergraduate tuition fees we need to apply for 2012 entry. We will also need to develop a fee plan and seek approval of that plan from HEFCW before we can declare our fee. We will make our fee information public as soon as we are able.
Will the fee levels be different for different courses?
We are not in a position to yet say what we will charge for particular courses. The University’s decision however, will be based on ensuring it is able to maintain and develop world-leading research-led teaching and learning, and an excellent student experience - both of which deliver long-term benefits for all students choosing to come to Cardiff to study; it will also reflect the ongoing commitment to ensuring any student with the ability to succeed is welcome at Cardiff.
What are the next steps?
The fee planning regulations will be voted on in the Senedd on 15 March 2011 and HEFCW will be publishing guidance on the fee planning process following approval in the Senedd. The intention is that all required legislation is made before the Assembly Elections in May 2011. This will allow the necessary time to adjust the various loan and payment systems that will support full implementation in academic year 2012/13.
Latest guidance indicates that universities in Wales will be required to submit their fee plans to HEFCW, indicating their intended fee levels, by the middle of May. Any subsequent negotiation between universities and HEFCW will need to have been finalised by late June or early July.
What does the basic tuition fee level mean?
The basic tuition fee defines the fee level above which an institution must provide a fee plan. For example, if an institution wishes to charge a higher fee up to £9,000 a year from 2012/13 then it must submit a fee plan to HEFCW for approval. Through the fee plan the institution will need to demonstrate commitment to widening access and other strategic objectives relevant to the promotion of higher education.
What is a fee plan?
The fee plan will set out the institution’s objectives with regard to promotion of equality of opportunity and the promotion of higher education. We are awaiting more information on the detail of the fee plan.
What are fee planning regulations?
Fee planning regulations represent the broad principles agreed in the National Assembly that prescribe the content and duration of fee plans required from higher education institutions which wish to charge tuition fees above the basic amount. They also set out what is required of HEFCW when approving and enforcing plans. The draft regulations specify that each fee plan will last for a maximum of two years and must set out the institution’s objectives with regard to promotion of equality of opportunity and the promotion of higher education.
There are still a number of areas which the University requires clarification on and further briefings will be issued when more details are available.
