Are we entering an era of students mainly picking a local uni and commuting?

[mids2019]

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2026/sep/13/rise-of-student-commuters-costs-living-at-home-or-in-halls

With the expense of student loans and general cost of living pressures coupled with exponentially increasing IT impact are we now going into be in a position of students maybe by default choosing a local university.

My concern would be maybe more academic kids from poorer backgrounds maybe going for a local option rather than going for maybe a better HEI which is more distant. Obviously Oxbridge may offer cheap accommodation but the students going there are from predominantly middle class backgrounds with parents I would hazard a guess maybe would be able to support their children anyway.. I think the problem will be with other Russell group institutions including London unis, Durham, Bristol, Edinburgh etx. where there may be some distance to travel.

Is this commuting student model really a good thing?

Then we have the dearth of alternatives to degree level education that is not University where one apprenticeship place has 200 applicants and means there is a serious lack of alternatives to University. But it's cheaper to blame YP for going to University than it is to call out businesses for not wanting to bother training young people or providing properly funded vocational education.

This.

DN gone to uni becuase she can't get anything locally to her. She had several zero hours p/t jobs and that seems to be all the area has to offer.

I think our kids are doing same equation - seeing their mates who don't go stuck at home with min wage p/t jobs with limited capciaty for advancement or if lucky using family or family networks for better jobs.

I've been looking at HNC HND courses in case DD2 doesn' get grades - and a course that would have suit her down to the ground stopped a few years ago - and while there are a few they are not in areas useful to her and she favours a foundation degree year anyway.

I do not think degree number will crater that to AI - most teens will hope they are the excepetions the fewer that do get the graduate jobs do not really understand fully debt implications and have limited other options and will still enjoy the years at uni. The numbers of 18 year olds will peak in around 4 years time then drop signifcantly - and that will likely affect many uni especially if international student numbers continue to fall.

My point was that the local offices etc didn't "need" grads back in the day, they took on school leavers with the requisite O and A levels and then trained them up internally, with options for them to move to other branches, or promotions into regional offices or head office. It was pretty rare for, say, someone leaving school with A Levels to work on the bank counter and stay there for life - I know some of my school cohort who started in a town bank branch and ended up in Head Office, I know one who started in a town insurance branch of a national insurance firm and ended up internally qualifying as an actuary at their Head Office. Nowadays, those options have gone, along with "entry level" jobs becoming graduate only, thus sucking graduates into the big cities and leaving a void/vacuum in the smaller cities, towns etc.

There were few such opportunities when I was a teen considering uni though there were a few.

Last place I lived in my late 30 and 40s there were many who found them and moved up but then found they couldn't move higher without a degree. My dad had been told similar previous genertaion and studied with OU round work and kids - like many I knew in that area did - a few did take few years out and do brick and mortor uni as well.

When I see writers in press going on about degree not being needed and some posters on here I suspect they have degrees as do most people they know and have never encounted that invisible barrier. It's not there in some area like trade jobs but it's surpsingly common one in many industries.

In my day (2005) most of my friends saw uni as an opportunity to get out from under their parents thumb. I couldn't commute daily to my uni but was still a lot closer than some of my friends. My husband was a mature student and could have lived at home but only did during his final year. I have noticed that a lot of uni age kids aren't as keen to leave the nest as we were. Maybe they feel life is easier at home, maybe they don't want to leave their Mum's, having to cook, clean, shop for themselves, this skills do not seem ti be tsught these days. Maybe it is the cost of living and rent even on campus is too high.

I’ve got one of each. One wanted the lifestyle, one wants no debts. Both are happy.

Your points do not contradict mine: young people who do not go to university because they are not qualified to do so will suffer disproportionately from the brain drain away from small town.

I moved into my first flat in 2005 at the age of 18. So we’re probably the same age.

I didn’t want to go to uni, and I didn’t want to live with my parents, so I just moved out instead and bought a flat. I had zero financial help, but didn’t need it as Northern Rock gave me a 100 percent mortgage. I earnt 22k per annum at the time as a receptionist.

There wasn’t a huge amount of money left after the mortgage, bills, food and partying but I loved having my own place. I did actually do a degree further down the line with the OU. I’ll be mortgage free at 43. Thank GOD I didn’t go to uni.

My son is 16, he’s got no hope of doing what I did. He’s currently doing A levels and desperate for a part time job, but not having much luck. Going to uni just feels pointless at the minute tbh.

I never understand the MN goal of being mortgage free half way through your working career. We had a mortgage, a very large house in the SE with land, several holidays a year, new cars and even paid a mortgage. Our goal was a decent house - and my God has it made us some money! Best thing ever to have had that mortgage and bought it!

Back then there was definitely a grad premium and DH got a big one!

People like the peace of mind in knowing that they have a roof over their head. It gives them more options in future life and means that they can cope better with unexpected changes.

In our case our mortgage was paid off which has allowed us to spend the "mortgage money" on other things as we've got older rather than just paying lots in interest. In the case of my SIL when her DH was diagnosed with a serious illness in his late 30s meaning that he was unable to work within a few years, it meant that they didn't have the worry of losing their house on top of everything else they were dealing with.

Taking on a large mortgage and not paying it off until much older is a bigger risk. Not everyone wants to take risks.

As this is a thread about students and affordability of university - taking on a large mortgage and expecting to pay it for most of your working life, as opposed to a smaller mortgage and paying it off earlier is somewhat akin to taking on student loans and expecting to pay them for 40 years versus taking smaller or no loans and paying them off more quickly.

@redskyAtNigh Most young people in the SE have a large mortgage! It’s the norm. We had a very manageable mortgage and had many great holidays and cars as well. It’s not either or. Nor is paying off a mortgage at 43 very sensible if you have high earnings because a house has been an appreciating asset. It’s why people mind up the housing ladder.

In terms of the thread. Staying local might work for some but in some areas grad opportunities are low. So you can get a degree but not much of a job. What value is the degree then? How will the grads afford houses unless they live in a very poor area? Going to a local uni nearby might work for them but the ifs is clear on grad returns and uni and subject matter if you want a property and a decent job to pay for it.

Most of the universities of Russell group and similar calibre, provide sizeable bursaries for students on maximum or near maximum loan. My friend's dd gets £3k bursary every year.The very popr and the well off are well looked after. It is the squeezed middle that suffers.
But moving away from home is pafy of the ino experience snd psft of tge process of building independence

Exactly. What is not to like about being mortgage free in your early 40s? It wasn’t a goal of mine to be honest. It just happened. I wanted independence at 18, I didn’t want to go to uni, so I bought a flat, working as a receptionist. 100 percent mortgage. Sold it for profit for my house, decent down payment and the rest is history.

Obviously those days are gone now and young people can’t just “buy a flat”.

Not everyone in the SE with a large mortgage can also afford a great many holidays and new cars as well. Even on good earnings. And houses aren’t making people money in the same way they did between eg mid 90s and mid 2000s. For plenty of people it is either or. And maybe they try to pay off the mortgage so that they can put that money towards helping young adult children. Or jobs are not secure.
Sure if you’re in the SE and can afford many holidays, new cars, helping young adult children and a massive mortgage, and house prices are rising so fast you’re definitely going to make loads of money on them - no need to pay off the mortgage then. But this isn’t the case for many people!

I don’t think so, having attended a few open days in recent weeks there were still absolutely tonnes of kids travelling there. I also know many people at their local university still going into university accommodation (at least for the first year) in order to make pals. This was never a thing when I was at uni in the 90s.

I think it’s increasingly popular and a good thing. My last has chosen to stay at home whilst her siblings moved. I’m already seeing big advantages.The debt is enough so any savings on maintenance is a good thing. Also she’s not so swept up in the Freshers dramas of rushing to make friends, feeling homesick etc and is just focused on the degree. As she said when arguing for it- I’m there for the degree not the social life. She has already made a friend during Freshers Week who is also staying at home.Our uni is RG and has a good outreach scheme to the disadvantaged.She came from a sixth form on the list for contextual offers that ranks as being among the more deprived communities in England but didn’t need it as had more than enough as regards grades. She has a friend from the same college just starting too,travelling about 50 miles. I think staying at home would encourage more from disadvantaged backgrounds to attend as some like my daughter don’t feel confident enough to move away for a variety of reasons but more than capable of doing a degree. One step at a time is enough for some and moving away doesn’t have to happen at 18. What I would say is I think an hours travel is probably enough and there should be financial support with costs for those that choose to do it if from deprived areas or financially deprived backgrounds. She has lectures everyday and thankfully gets free travel but it would be very expensive if she didn’t.

I just wonder how many kids from lower income families will be forgoing the full university experience simply because of finance? Your position seems entirely logical but are there large cohorts of bright young things that are looking very carefully at the finance of degrees perhaps at the expense of a course which they deserve or really want to do?

It must be a consideration for all students but some very good unis are definitely working hard at outreach and supporting those from deprived backgrounds into uni.

@mids2019 So many disadvantaged dc don’t have a RG uni on the doorstep! Travelling 50 miles would be a challenge for the disadvantaged too. Do they have a car or a season ticket for the train? Who pays for those in a disadvantaged home?

Yes, staying at home and not having any ambition for a better uni is a barrier to getting a better job. The local uni might be bottom 20% when dc should be aiming for a top 20 uni. This will stifle social mobility.

It’s worrying dc don’t see the advantage of socialising. Employers actually quite like dc who are self sufficient and sociable. They don’t want a hermit with a degree. Increasingly a wide range of skills is necessary and navigating the issues around living with others and navigating the world as an independent young person does matter. It’s all about widening horizons and growing up! Taking responsibility and juggling life successfully. I have also known some employers not be keen in stay at home types because they are under developed in some areas and have not pushed themselves to be the best person they can be.

Interesting take, not matching my experience thought.

No employer ever asked me where I stayed during uni.

Social life of daily students and halls students worked differently, halls students being more of a close community, brought together by necessity, while daily students keeping both pre-uni and our chosen uni circles.

...have not pushed themselves to be the best person they can be.
Yeah, because partying at the halls is so much more wholesome than keeping the community ties (scout leaders, orchestra, ... )

“Employers actually quite like dc who are self sufficient and sociable. They don’t want a hermit with a degree. Increasingly a wide range of skills is necessary and navigating the issues around living with others and navigating the world as an independent young person does matter. It’s all about widening horizons and growing up! Taking responsibility and juggling life successfully. I have also known some employers not be keen in stay at home types because they are under developed in some areas and have not pushed themselves to be the best person they can be.”

That is frankly a pretty ignorant post. Living at home does not make you a hermit or mean you aren’t self sufficient, particularly so given some of the uni parent groups I’ve seen. How rude!Navigating a commute, life experience, life challenges and uni without the comfort of instant friends from halls indicates huge independence and resilience. Many will have far more lived experience and life skills. Clubbing on repeat and fighting over fridge space doesn’t give anybody a monopoly on independence, taking responsibility, juggling life or navigating the world. My dd has bags more of that than most people her age.

And as for your comment re employers discriminating against “stay at home types”. 😂I’d love to know how any would know. Also employers like experience and qualifications which those living at home will have in spades just the same as anybody else. I’m not sure a degree in socialising trumps either or that going from a cloistered school to a cloistered uni makes you more developed than somebody with life experience which is often far easier to convey on job applications.If anything I think doing a degree from home would be a huge attraction.

Or jobs, caring responsibilities, overcoming adversity, disabilities, illness….

@Butterba11 It frankly isn’t. Totally depends on sector and interaction expected with others. Plus if have excellent A levels but could not be bothered to match their education to the degree offered at a top class uni, they want a cushy life.

Who on earth thinks university living is just about parties? Such an ignorant post. Not representative of many students.

We’re all away from home uni educated ( husband, me, siblings, parents, children etc) so very much know what uni life is like.We also have a child studying from home so can see the advantages and the extra social resilience you need when not living in halls or with other students.

Going to uni near to home does not mean you aren’t going to a good uni and it’s not about wanting a cushty life. Many are studying from home will be living anything other than a cushty life and balancing a degree with real life out of uni is hugely admirable. Many young people have degrees, it’s the extras you put on your cv that count.

It will be a draw for many employers and those who have studied at home will have the luxury of being able to decide if they want to use it as an advantage or not as no employer will ever know.

no employer will ever know

Although the proximity of the university to their home address may lead to an assumption being made.