Opinion abstract
British Dental Journal 199, 561 - 563 (2005)
Published online: 12 November 2005 | doi:10.1038/sj.bdj.4812900
Financing student education in the future
- Describes the major changes in university tuition fees that will take place in 2006 and explains the potential implications to future dental students regarding the financing of their education.
- At present, prior to the introduction of increased tuition fees, insufficient numbers of pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds apply to study medicine and dentistry.
- When the increased tuition fees come into force, the government has put procedures in place to encourage applications from students of low-income families.
- The level of debt incurred by final year dental students would seem to influence their future career plans.
Abstract
Funding arrangements for university students entering courses will undergo a major change from 2006. From that date, universities will be able to charge students up to £3,000 in tuition fees as a contribution to their education. Dental students may be disproportionately affected by the resulting debt because they will have less opportunity than those in other courses to earn money during a long summer vacation. In addition, dental and medical courses are longer in duration than the typical three year British degree course. We have outlined the major changes in these funding arrangements. Drawing on our experience in the United States and elsewhere in the world, we suggest that further large increases in university tuition fees seem inevitable. A major consequence of rising student debt may be denial of entry into the dental profession of the more disadvantaged in our community. Urgent research and planning needs to be done in advance so that this unpleasant scenario is prevented.
