University fees

[another mother]

Not that easy to start a highflying career from a standing domestic start though is it?!
So that won't help the girls.

Completely agree with you Looking For Help.. It's going to seriously restrict options - and it's not easy for young graduates now.

[mike1880]

Now they've cut all the tax

I must have missed that. When did that happen?

I think you'll find that percentage of GDP taken in taxes has been rising inexorably for years (percentage of my salary taken in taxes certainly hasn't declined since probably early 1990s or thereabouts) and I for one would like to know where it's all going because it sure as h*ll isn't going on things we used to get when we paid less tax, like free university education.

Mike

[zee]

I was thinking it would be better to pay it upfront or clear the loan ASAP after DC have finished uni, however am concerned that a future government might write off the loans and introduce graduate tax... so could end up paying twice. watch this space I think

That's our fear too. Our current plan is to keep what we've saved in the bank and use it to contribute towards the deposit of a first property instead.

Another thing I've wondered about is that the small number of graduates who marry money and no income in their own name need never pay back anything - even if they live in a palace. I wonder if the former Kate Middleton has paid back all of her loan?

[asdguest]

Can't believe they'd introduce a graduate tax retrospectively otherwise, heaven forbid, some of them may have to dig into their own pockets!

[hermanmunster]

I was thinking it would be better to pay it upfront or clear the loan ASAP after DC have finished uni, however am concerned that a future government might write off the loans and introduce graduate tax... so could end up paying twice. watch this space I think

That's our fear too. Our current plan is to keep what we've saved in the bank and use it to contribute towards the deposit of a first property instead.

Another thing I've wondered about is that the small number of graduates who marry money and no income in their own name need never pay back anything - even if they live in a palace. I wonder if the former Kate Middleton has paid back all of her loan?

No, cos she's never earned enough money!

[Looking for help]

I must have missed that. When did that happen?

Mike

1986 Basic rate of income tax 30% nowadays what ? 20%

We are taxed in a wholly different way nowadays, and the bottom line is that the percentage taken from our wages is much much lower than it was historically.

But anyway that is a political argument, not really the crux of this matter, which is what a lot of nonsense this is. We have decided that we will do what we can to assist our children to repay once they are finished, and we have less financial responsibility for them ( you know, when they LEAVE HOME and stop costing us money) . Our son will be ok, as he is currently at Uni, and the fees are a paltry £3k per year, our next daughter is being sponsored, so that's great - but our youngest 2 are going to have a time of it, I think . However we must still encourage them to achieve their full potential despite the huge burden they will have to face on graduation and beyond. , otherwise we will have let them down.

[mim]

Sadly, and wearily, I can't see the average uni course costing less than £30k a year, maybe £25k if DCs stay at home. That's the rate for indies, so why should uni be cheaper?

The country has run out of money, has to try to keep up with the rest of the world in skills, so we'll have to pay for our kids, or they'll have to start life with huge debt.

£27k up front for the course? Grab it, that bargain will never come again. No future government will be tempted to lose power by funding tertiary education.

Foreign students? They pay a lot more than that now. If they were kept out we'd have (even) fewer unis (than we're heading for) and higher fees.

Like many others, we're seriously shopping globally. Look at long-established schools for courses such as medicine, dentistry, vet science, architecture, maths, engineering,... where they don't (yet) screw their foreign students as badly for fees as we do...

[yoyo123]

( you know, when they LEAVE HOME and stop costing us money)

it's still costing us plenty!