In part it is because the government makes it so easy to get loans. Since it is easy to get loans, schools figure they can charge whatever they want and people can take out more loans. The government is more than happy to have more loans given out and the cycle repeats. Inflation is ~3%, school tuition costs go up about 7%. Obviously there is something wrong with the system, and having the government pay for it (like a lot of European countries) isn't the solution needed. I mean, if we did that we'd end up with the university system working like the stupid NY State school system (In NYS you have to take "regents exams" which are only recognized within NYS. To make matters worse we waste tons of money on it and all they do is teach students how to pass the test, not about the actual subject).

This is something I don't agree with. I personally believe that Universities should be able to charge what they want for tuition fees, and for British students to stop being subsidized by the state (and this is coming from someone who's starting University in three weeks).

I don't see how this would be a class issue, as University fees tend to be paid after the student has left the University - and the jobs that students will be getting should be paying more than enough to offset the increased cost of University. Like I said, this won't be limiting to the poor people of this country because they're not expected to pay up until they, themselves, hit a certain level of income (as is how Student Finance works) - but the increased costs of Uni will make some people reconsider, and, thus only those who receive the greatest benefit in going will go - helping to fight off this "education inflation" that we have been seeing in the past couple of decades.

More importantly, however, is that this will mean that the Universities will no longer need to mug off foreign students to help cover the costs of teaching Britons. This will allow British Universities to become more competitive in the international educational market. We do currently do quite well in these regards, (second only to the United States in terms of attracting international students). However, this is a title that is slowly slipping. Britain used to attract a lot of Chinese students - however, more and more are deciding to stay closer to home: either staying in China, or going to Universities in South Korea, and other developed areas in the region (not to mention the ever-shrinking market of China - what with the one-child policy).

British Universities could become more competitive, by offering lower tuition fees to foreign students (which are currently extortionate). The overall increases in revenues both from charging domestic students more, and attracting more foreign students, will allow the Universities to reinvest, improving the Universities, and improving the value of a British degree.

I really like the Japanese way.

The best universities are "state" universities, and they are fully paid for.

Everyone else pays for private universities.

I really like the Japanese way.

The best universities are "state" universities, and they are fully paid for.

Everyone else pays for private universities.

Fortunately that's the portuguese way as well.

the only problem with the japanese way is that it puts a lot of pressure on students who end up with a very high suicide rate. Is it the same in portugal>?