University fees to increase from September 2025

@TheGoldenGate if you are an adult with an EU or EEA passport can’t you just get a part time job and become tax resident and then enroll? One of my DC is at ETH Zurich with an exchange programme lined up for MIT and probably Masters too, has a job in a tech company part time paying loads for a student. That was only possible for us financially because a family member has a spare room but DC entirely self sufficient, will have zero debt and is getting an outstanding education. I am sure I will find options for the other DCs, they are all on track for top grades too.
Not a single member in my entire wider family across several continents is not a higher rate tax payer. I am sure my DC will be too eventually. The way this country is going it is better if they try options abroad too. Unless they want to be eg an English lawyer courses abroad will expand their horizon, improve their language skills. It’s a no brainer for us. They need to try at least and are up for it.

Worth noting (and the press hasn't yet picked up on it so MNers probably won't have) is that foundation year fees for classroom based courses drops by £4k from next year as well. So some institutions may well find their fee income declines despite the modest increase to headline fees.

Its always amazed me that SAHM and Students are classed as "Economically inactive"

Being a "mum" (i inc dads in this who stay at home) is fucking hard work.

So relieved to be raising DC in Scotland where fees are waived.

How is that possible? All countries in EU from 2026 require not only citizenship of a country but also proof of residence there( tax) to study for free

True. Mind you the 'working people' part is a bit suspect too

Oh yes. I’ll just give my kids their European passport and they can go do that.

I think, so long as qualifications are recognised, more young people will go abroad but it wont be poorer families doing this, this wont be the last fee increase.

Well Done UK PLC.

No fees in several European countries but in some you need an EU, EEA or Swiss passport. And some have very very minor fees.

I thought there were no fees in some European countries? If that’s true and rent is cheaper then it could be no different to having to make up the maintenance loan shortfall here

And where do you suppose parents get the money upfront from to fund fees and maintenance - no loans for EU study (RoI excepted).

Where would you have got the money from to keep Uni's viable?

The state of their finances, isn't down to Labours 4 months in power but the Tories 14 years...

How Starmer is behaving since getting into power really shows people should always take politicians manifestos, leading up to elections, with a pinch of salt. They can always go back with ‘but we weren’t aware of what we were left with following the last government’. They really are just liars and manipulators, yet people still take what they say as gospel.

It can be cheaper to rent in eg Germany in a house share and attend a uni there. If you have a legacy EU passport. Well worth looking into all options now. Especially for tech/STEM/engineering.

They need to increase the maintenance loan. A loan of £4600 for living costs when household parental income is 60k isn’t enough when rent can be £300 a week. 60k may well be a decent income but parents have their own Mortgages and bills, other kids, rising bills, falling wages, inflation…..and then have to find 12k a year or so for one child. God help you if you have two kids at uni!

@Alexandra2001 Not sure it’s any worse that currently though. They’ll only pay it back if they earn over a threshold and have slightly less short term pain.

How? Do you understand that 9% of your salary over a threshold is 9% of your salary over a threshold regardless of the total loan. 9% is 9% is 9%.

I complained loads about Plan 5 and also the extortionate interest rates linked to inflation before that.

...they have to pay that back, it will put those from poorer families off Uni

Its not "worse" its just more of the same.... £285 will not be felt over 40years.

imho Uni fees are very short sighted, for those than can, they'll go abroad as Uni in the UK becomes less attractive, so we get less poorer students going to Uni, less social mobility, more people stuck in lower paid work or no work, lower tax take....

I don't get why other countries have almost no Uni fees, but the UK has some of the highest in the world.

My DDs new band 6 wage is strongly impacted by fees, its not a small amount, almost £1000 per year & Sunak increased it to 40 years..... no one gave a hoot.

Actually I think it works out of the poorest are slightly “better off” in terms of the max maintenance loan being more than the annual course fee increase.

Yes so Labour have taken what Tories already did to students and made it even worse.

The maximum grant. Not for everyone.

Honestly this is the worst way they could have gone - any increase is going to impact on the confidence of poorer students (even though logically the amount paid back a year will not change) and its no use to any University. The estimate was they all needed £12500 so this won't stop any cuts or job losses. But hey, the extra £285 does come with a little lecture about how they all need to be efficient and reach out to communities, so that's nice.

There is no promise they won't break and no deeply held belief that won't now be jettisoned for another equal but opposite deeply held belief in the ((patronising)) name of 'grown-up government'.

Maintenance grants are increasing by £414. How does that make sense if fees are increasing by £285? did i not hear it properly?