Student Earnings
One in five students would be financially better off if they skipped higher education, according to groundbreaking research that compares the lifetime earnings of graduates and non-graduates.
Analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) found that ___ 31 ___ about 80% of former students gained financially from attending university, 20% earned less than those with similar school results who did not attend, highlighting how some subjects, such as creative arts, offer negative financial returns. The IFS research – which uses tax data to measure the earnings of those who went to university from the mid-90s onwards – also found that after accounting for taxes and student loans, men gained on average £130,000 and women £100,000 over their careers, compared with their ___ 32 ___ who didn’t enter higher education.
As well as the total “graduate premium” being different between the sexes, it is also unevenly distributed over time, with women reaching a glass ceiling on earnings growth in their 30s and 40s, even among Oxbridge graduates. The premium also differed ___ 33 ___ the subject studied.
Michelle Donelan, the universities minister, said that while the benefits of higher education included “unquantifiable experiences and friendships,” she was still concerned about value for money. “It is no surprise our universities attract students from all over the world. That ___ 34 ___ is built on quality and my role is to safeguard that, while ensuring students and the taxpayer are getting the value they would expect for their investment,” Donelan said.
However, Joe Grady, the general secretary of the University and College Union, said: “It is vital to recognise that education is about much more than just financial benefit. Focusing on future income following university ___ 35 ___ the wider benefits that education brings to individuals and to society.”
Richard Adams, The Guardian