Careers Decision-making and Career Development of Part-time Higher Education Students

Published: June 2010; Pages:180; Size: 1MB

Part-time study could be at risk due to insufficient government financial support reveals the Higher Education Careers Services Unit’s (HECSU) ‘Futuretrack: Part-time Students’ study, published today.

The research, conducted by Birkbeck University of London and the National Institute for Economic and Social Research, studied 3,704 part-time undergraduate students from across the UK to expose the reality of higher education’s poor relation, raising concerns over the cost of part-time study and the nature of financial support available to students – all important issues for the Browne Review of Higher Education Funding and Student Finance. 

It reveals the average annual cost of part-time study is £1,730 of which £1,166 goes on tuition and £564 on other course costs such as books. Only 14% of students received a government fee grant and for 43% of them the funds were not enough to meet the cost of their tuition. In contrast, 41% received help from their employer of which only 17% had to find additional finances.  

However, employees cannot rely on support from their employer. Companies were found to be very selective about who they were prepared to sponsor, favouring the most advantaged in their workforce. Consequently, students least in need of employer support receive it, while the most disadvantaged groups miss out.  

In terms of course costs, 19% were awarded a government grant, which was insufficient for two-thirds (68%) of students. Employers supported students in other forms such as offering paid time-off work to study (47%) and contributions towards course expenses (15%).

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