Currently, Island students cannot access the UK Student Loan Scheme, but are entitled to a loan of £1,500 per year through NatWest bank, and a means-tested grant is also available.
Education Minister Rod Bryans has now passed on nine proposals – which range from the current system for funding higher education to a full student loan scheme – to Chief Minister Ian Gorst for discussion.
Recent reports have suggested that the total level of student loan debt in the UK has risen to more than £100 billion for the first time, with the average student accruing about £36,000 of debt.
Loan repayments in the UK are dependent on graduates’ income once they start working, with repayments based on nine per cent of what they earn above £21,000. However, after 30 years, any outstanding student debt is written off.
Deputy Bryans said that the sub-committee – which includes himself, Senator Gorst, Treasury Minister Alan Maclean and Assistant Education Minister Anne Pryke – would have to decide which of the proposals would best suit the Island’s students.
He said: ‘We have to wait for the Treasury Minister to come back, having looked at the financial side of each proposal.
‘We need to look at everything from the grant system we have now, to a full loan system and everything in between.
‘I would love to get to a situation where finance was not a barrier to students leaving the Island and we could offer higher education funding to everyone, but we need to be a bit more circumspect.
‘A full loan system may make it [university] less viable to those that are
the most vulnerable financially, so we have to carefully consider all the factors.
‘We will have to talk through each of the options and decide which one is the best to move forward with.’
A damning report from the Education and Home Affairs Scrutiny Panel released earlier this year found that higher education was underfunded in Jersey, and crippling university costs were putting strains on families and leaving some young Islanders unable to continue into higher education. Deputy Bryans added that as well as the proposals to fund higher education, the department would also be working to strengthen the options available to those who did not wish to study in the UK.
He said that Highlands now offered 23 degree courses, while the Island was also developing strong relationships with places like Caen University in France – representatives from which had visited the Island.
The average cost of a three-year UK university course, including accommodation and maintenance fees, is about £60,000. In comparison, the total fees for a pre-degree language year at Caen University come to just under 3,000 euros.
For degree courses after that, students pay about 500 euros for their registration fee and health insurance, and tuition is free.
Deputy Bryans added: ‘I think what we are likely to see is a lot more students maybe going down the less traditional routes.
‘Last year seven Hautlieu students went to university in Holland and we also know that the finance sector is becoming a lot more willing to take A-Level students on and train them, which a lot will see as a good option.’
