Understanding the National University Cuts
What do the national education cuts mean for students and higher education in the future?
As a student, there is no way to avoid the news of upcoming university cuts within national news and internal university conversations. For some, the effects would have already begun with strikes, protests and ramifications to your time at university. So here is a breakdown of the current state of University Cuts: causes, actions and speculated outcomes for students.
Events leading up to the current cuts
Visas:
The political sphere has been misaligned since the United Kingdom left the European Union in 2020; this withdrawal necessitated changes to citizenship and visas.
As of January 2024, visa laws have also changed, meaning that international students can now only change their student visas to work once their courses are completed. Additionally, it was announced that changes to dependency regulations would take effect; you now cannot bring a dependent (partner or children) into the UK with you unless you are a PhD student.
International Student Fees:
These new laws, combined with the ever-increasing tuition fees for international students studying in the UK and the declining graduate job market, have contributed to a significant decrease in student visa applications and international students applying to UK universities.
Of course, there are still UK students applying to higher education. However, this loss has created a smaller student pool for universities to advertise to and enrol to reach their funding.
University Action
UK Tuition Fees Rise:
To balance the loss and combat inflation, universities have increased their tuition fees from £9,250 to £9,535 as of the next academic year (2025-26).
Cuts:
Cardiff University announced the decision to cut 400 full-time positions to tackle their funding after sending out thousands of emails to their staff regarding the possibility of their redundancies. In addition to closing departments such as nursing, music, ancient history, theology, religion and modern languages from the university.
However, Cardiff is certainly not the only one, with Dundee University planning to cut 635 jobs and other universities expected to follow.
What Students Can Expect
While the ramifications on students are unknown, we can certainly predict and prepare for the impact. In the next couple of months, strikes will likely resume as university staff and students plea to prevent the cuts, universities and lecturers will keep you informed on this and prepare you for any disturbances to schedules.
Long-term impacts:
- Fewer course options available- You will have to be more intentional about where you study and what courses you do, depending on what each university offers.
- Larger class sizes- With staff being cut, the class sizes will likely get larger, and deadlines will change due to increased marking time.
- Fewer support services and extracurriculars
- Reduced quality of teaching- With class sizes increasing, staff workload will increase, and contact hours may decrease.
- Fewer research opportunities
While cuts will impact students’ higher education experiences, it is important to remember that education is adaptable and just as universities adapted to the pandemic, they will do so with new changes.
