Association of Colleges

15 April 2011

The majority of further education colleges teaching higher education expect to charge 2012 tuition fees under the threshold requiring ‘access agreements’, according to new research.

An Association of Colleges survey of 50 colleges showed that for 31 colleges funded directly by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), 12 expect to charge £6000 or over and 19 expect to charge less than £6000. (See table below)

“Colleges offer affordable excellence as an alternative to university higher education,” said Nick Davy, AoC Higher Education Policy Manager.

“There is often a distinction between college ‘higher skills’ education and a standard university degree. College courses tend to have a vocational emphasis and be designed in partnership with employers.

“Many colleges teach higher education in areas without a university or where a university does not recruit locally. They are likely to have smaller class sizes and score well with students for time given over to tutorials.

“Colleges operate efficiently; their focus is often on teaching rather than research and they frequently have lower overheads than universities.”

The research follows recent speeches by Universities Minister David Willetts and Business Secretary Vince Cable in which they praised the ‘distinctive value’ and vocational emphasis of college HE.

“Most colleges are yet to formally declare their fee level but our study shows that most will want to charge under £6000,” said Mr Davy. “Traditionally college tuition fees have, on average, been lower than those set by universities.

“Tuition fees aside – college students are currently graduating with £17,500 less debt than their university counterparts because of lower living costs, according to our latest research.*

“All this combined means that college higher education is an extremely attractive choice for young people. We would expect it to become even more so as students and parents place greater scrutiny on weighing up their options to see how they can keep debts to a minimum while achieving a high-quality education.”

Over 260 colleges teach 160,000 students on higher education courses but less than half of these colleges are directly funded by HEFCE  – the rest deliver higher education through franchise agreements with partner universities.

The fees set by colleges who work in federation with universities are generally agreed by a process of consultation between the university and the college. Colleges directly funded by HEFCE set their fees independently.

“The range of HE qualifications and training that college students can access is wide – from full Bachelors and Masters Degrees to Higher National Diplomas and professional vocational qualifications such as accountancy, journalism and teaching,” said Mr Davy. 

Survey results

Directly funded courses
Over £6,000 - 3 Colleges
£6,000 - 9 Colleges
Under £6,000 - 19 Colleges

Indirectly funded (ie in partnership with Universities)
Over £6,000 - 11 Colleges
£6,000 - 27 Colleges
Under £6,000 - 16 Colleges
 

Survey Notes:

• 50 colleges providing higher education were surveyed at AoC’s 31 March Higher Education Conference.
• AoC did not seek to identify individual colleges in line with competition law advice.
• Some colleges deliver both indirectly and directly funded courses – hence the survey shows results for 65 types of courses delivered by 50 colleges.
 

 

Further Notes:

 

• *A November 2010 AoC study showed that on average, college students graduating from a three-year higher education course in the next few years expect to owe a total of around £5,680. By contrast, a recent study by university researchers Push has forecast that students who started at university last year are likely to owe more than £23,200 by the time they leave and new students should reckon on around £1,500 more than that. The  findings highlight how a combination of greater opportunities to work part-time while studying, the ability to live at home and reduced travel costs are all key factors in minimising the overall debt levels of HE college students.

Why do students choose to study HE in FE?

Students value HE in FE for:

• Local delivery
• High number of teaching hours
• Good levels of tutor access and support
• Vocational relevance
• The focus on teaching

What type of higher education courses are taught in Colleges?

• Full three-year Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science Degrees
• Foundation Degrees
• Masters Degrees
• Higher National Diplomas
• Higher National Certificates
• Professional vocational qualifications at level 4 and above – i.e. accountancy/journalism/teaching

Who funds HE in colleges?

• Most HE delivered in colleges is funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE).
• Colleges receive HEFCE funding in one of two ways, directly from HEFCE or indirectly through a partner Higher Education Institution (HEI). The HE provision offered by colleges is partly dependent on how they receive their funding.
• Directly funded provision is constrained by the Education Prescribed Courses of Higher Education Regulations 1998 which prescribes that colleges may only be funded to deliver whole qualifications. Colleges funded indirectly through an HEI can offer short courses or modules on behalf of the HEI.
• The Skills Funding Agency can also fund HE. It has a power, but not a duty, to fund professional qualifications at higher levels such as those awarded by the professional Institutes, e.g. Housing, Marketing, and Accounting. This type of HE is described as Non-Prescribed HE.
• Some provision is contracted and funded by other bodies such as the NHS or the Training and Development Agency for schools and some, particularly professional qualifications, may be fully funded by employers and employees.
 
Part-time students

If we include non-prescribed professional programmes, the majority of HE in FE is delivered on a part-time basis, often to people who wish to improve their career prospects while in lower-grade posts. HE in FE can provide an opportunity to gain entry to the professions by obtaining Chartered or other professional qualifications. These give a licence to practise and immediately widen the career options and lifestyle choices available to the student.

What do students do afterwards?

Most Foundation Degree graduates progress to the final year of an honours course. Anecdotal evidence suggests that HE in FE graduates have a higher rate of progression into employment than those leaving from the university sector, possibly because of the more vocational nature of their courses. Those already in employment are more able to maintain/improve their positions within their existing company or sector.

What about quality and standards?
 
This is not in doubt. Recent reviews (2008-09) by the Quality Assurance Agency led to a confidence judgement in 95% of the HE delivered in FE. A comparative judgement on the provision delivered by universities is not available.

How does it serve the needs of employers, including SMEs, support jobs, business, enterprise and the economy?

In many ways, part-time students reflect the local economy, as they become the managers and entrepreneurs of the future. Colleges and employers tailor Foundation Degrees to meet immediate and predicted skill needs, thereby developing a pool of skilled technicians within the locality. More importantly, the idea of upgrading skills through work-based learning becomes the norm; it becomes part of company and locality culture for employers and employees to purchase skill packages from their local college in order to maintain their skills at an optimum level. Micro-employers and SMEs, particularly in rural areas, are often wholly dependent on FE Colleges for access to higher-level skills training. 

Why is it vital to local and national economic success?

Traditional modes of HE delivery do not fit with a rapidly changing technological economy and society – we need to move to a situation whereby HE skills can be developed and upgraded across a working life, enabling skilled practitioners to retain and improve their skills.

 

 

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