Postgraduate education: an independent enquiry by the Higher Education Commission

Key Messages from the report

1. A perfect storm is ahead
   Fees for postgraduate courses are increasing, whilst a credit crisis, with banks less willing to offer career development loans, continues. Employers and institutions are concerned that future student cohorts will be less willing to incur further debt to undertake postgraduate study, whilst changes in the immigration system could limit international demand for postgraduate study. We are concerned that the cumulative impact of these developments may inflict significant damage on the health of the postgraduate sector.
2. Postgraduates should be part of a holistic vision for our education system
   Postgraduates are key to Britain’s continued success in an increasingly competitive globalised world. Despite this they are almost entirely absent from the current policy debate. We need to take a holistic view of the English education system. Rather than sub-optimising on individual stages, our conceptual framework has to include postgraduates.
3. We need to improve access to postgraduate education
   Postgraduate education is “the new frontier of widening participation” – with prospective students currently barred from study if they cannot afford fees or access sufficient credit. There are a number of fields and professions where postgraduate qualifications are becoming a de facto requirement for employment. If action is not taken we could see the gains made from widening participation at undergraduate level diminished.
4. We need more home-domiciled students to undertake postgraduate education
   High numbers of international students cannot compensate for poor take-up of postgraduate education among home-domiciled students. An emphasis is needed on up-skilling of the UK population, ensuring that British students are able to compete in the global labour market. Britain has become the global capital of education outsourcing. A large number of students study in Britain and then return to their home countries, where they innovate and help build economic advantage. We need to encourage retention of international students by promoting opportunities for post-study work. Much of our postgraduate provision is unviable without international students. Care must be taken that changes in the immigration system do not adversely impact on our national capacity in key disciplines.
5. We need a sustainable system for funding postgraduate education
   There is a strong case for state-backed student loans to be introduced for segments of postgraduate provision where the financial markets have failed to provide competitive sources of finance. The government should immediately establish a taskforce to examine the feasibility of a postgraduate student loan scheme and develop policy options, reporting by December 2013.

Full report (PDF 88pp)

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