Spring 2011 - Birkbeck College

loans system will provide a means of ensuring that
significant numbers of part-time students benefit from
government support from 2012-2013 compared to the 10%
who currently receive a partial fee grant.
Tiered structure
Although these changes are of vital importance to the
College, like the rest of the sector, we face difficult times
over the next few years as government funding is
progressively reduced. For example, our HEFCE grant for
2011-2012 is approximately £1.9 million lower than for
2010-2011. We are continuing our policy of the last few
years involving progressive fee increases moving towards
pro rata (i.e. 75%) of the current maximum full-time fee. In
2011-2012, we will reach this pro rata figure so that the
majority of our courses will charge a part-time fee just
under £2,500 pa. We have also introduced a tiered
structure in which certain courses in Tier 2 or Tier 3
will charge higher fees. As always, all these fees will be
supported by generous bursaries supplementing the
current low levels of government support. Over the last
few years, this policy has allowed income to be increased
to cover losses in HEFCE funding while recruitment has
increased year-on-year. So far, this rise in applications has
continued this year as prospective students seek to take
advantage of the last year prior to the new loans system.
Unfortunately however, our HEFCE grant will continue
to fall over the next few years and we expect teaching
funding to reduce from £23 million to around £5 million
pa over the next five years. Clearly, the College has no
alternative other than to increase fees significantly in
2012-2013, while ensuring that students are fully aware
both of the loan system and other financial support.
At their meeting in March, Governors endorsed a fee
strategy which would involve three tiers of fees for
undergraduate degree courses. The middle tier would be
the default tier. However, courses with particular widening
participation roles would be placed in the lower fee Tier 1,
while those with high demand and/or which provide
professionally-relevant qualifications would be placed in
the high fee, Tier 3, with all tiers supported by bursaries.
Part-time study benefits
Clearly there will be considerable challenges in persuading
part-time students to study with these newly increased
fees, even supported by loans and bursaries. We need to
emphasise particularly the benefits of earning-while-you-
Above:
A prospective
student at an
Open Evening
Left: Birkbeck’s
main building
MASTER’S REPORT
“The loans system will provide a
means of ensuring that significant
numbers of part-time students
benefit from government support
from 2012.”
are-learning in this new system so that we attract many of
the mature students who currently study full-time. It is
encouraging that our part-time courses may be flagged up
in the Universities Central Admission System (UCAS) for the
first time in 2012-2013, providing us with the opportunity
to attract those who would otherwise study full-time.
Challenging times lie ahead for Birkbeck. However,
unlike the consequences of the withdrawal of funding
for students studying for equivalent or lower level
qualifications (ELQ), these difficulties are not specific to
Birkbeck but affect the entire Higher Education sector. I
believe that the unique mission of Birkbeck, together with
the structural changes put in place after the ELQ funding
withdrawal, will enable us to continue to develop and
flourish in the new Higher Education environment.
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