Nearly half of students don’t think university is worth the money

A new survey by Quotezone.co.uk asked students across Great Britain about their experience at university during the cost-of-living crisis.

The survey found that nearly half of the students involved in the study (42%) thought that university wasn’t worth the money.

Nearly three quarters of students (72%) said they were shocked at how expensive university was. 59% of respondents said, considering fees, accommodation, transport and living expenses, they were paying around £10-20,000 yearly for university, with a further 9% saying it was costing them £20-25,000 a year.

When asked, how did they afford a university education, the top answer, with 32%, was a student loan. With 54% stating they needed more than one source of income to afford university, namely a combination of either family support, personal savings, a part-time job or a student loan.

Government data suggests that students are relying more on student loan payments than in previous years to pay for university.  Of the £19.8 billion paid out in the form of Income Contingent Loans in financial year 2021-22, undergraduate borrowers received £18.9 billion (95.4% of all loans paid). This was a £0.9 billion increase (+ 5.0%) in comparison to the previous financial year.

The amount lent to undergraduates in the form of Tuition Fee Loans and Maintenance Loans has more than doubled since financial year 2013-14, from £9.0 billion (+ 109.6%).

With this in mind, Quotezone.co.uk is launching its annual Fintech Scholarship, designed to raise awareness of the vast career opportunities available within the fintech sector that help make university costs worthwhile.

The UK fintech sector is the top-ranking investment destination in Europe, with £3 billion venture capital attracted in 2020.  Accounting for 11% of the global industry and home to an estimated 2,500 firms, the UK fintech industry currently employs 76,500 people with this set to grow to 105,500 by 2030 – with a reputation for lucrative salaries and a wealth of benefits and development opportunities.**

The application process for the scholarship involves submitting a blog or vlog post discussing any benefits and barriers they believe university education currently has as well as any benefits and barriers to pursuing a career in the fintech sector – to help shed some light on these important issues.

The winner of the scholarship will receive a £1000 bursary which can be used to help ease some study costs, or even course materials and living expenses.  The winner will also get the option to take part in industry related work experience at Quotezone.co.uk  – to help support the candidate with recruitment.

Commenting on the scholarship, Greg Wilson, CEO at Quotezone.co.uk said: “The cost-of-living crisis is impacting everyone right now and students are one of the groups that have been hardest hit. Our survey results show significant financial pressures on students which has led to nearly half of them admitting they don’t think university is worth the money.

“With this in mind, we wanted to use our scholarship initiative as a platform to highlight the opportunities available for students who invest in further education.  The fintech industry in Great Britain is expanding rapidly, with a wealth of well-paid opportunities for all students from all courses.

“Now in its fourth year, our fintech scholarship aims to support the winner with a financial prize as well as hands on experience to support them in their recruitment efforts – in the hope they consider this booming industry as a viable option for their career.”

Last year’s winner was Aayushi Sharma from the University of Glasgow, who wrote an insightful blog on how fintech is disrupting traditional financial services.

The deadline to enter the Quotezone.co.uk Fintech Scholarship is 30 April 2024, full details of how to apply are available here.

References:

Quotezone.co.uk’s findings are based on a randomised survey of 600 respondents across the UK during August 2023, which represents a margin of error of approximately 5% at a 95% confidence level.

*https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/student-loans-in-england-2021-to-2022/student-loans-in-england-financial-year-2021-22

**https://www.great.gov.uk/international/content/investment/sectors/fintech/