Funding my Education

You may be finding yourself at the stage where you are deciding your future. Will you go into further education, or are you inclined to start looking for work immediately? For the vast majority of students, money is a very important element in any decision they make about further education. It may well be the deciding factor when you choose a course, especially if you are tempted by some of those which take several years to complete.

You may wonder how you could possibly afford to remain a student for six or seven years. It may also influence you in deciding whether to take a gap year before going to university and try to earn some money; or perhaps you are thinking of taking a sandwich course. Student loans are, of course, one option - but are they economically worthwhile? Perhaps you might consider studying part-time while you are working, and thus not run up those substantial debts that will need to be paid off after you leave further education.

In this activity you will undertake the research necessary to make an oral presentation to a group of your peers analysing the different ways in which education might be funded, and suggesting a variety of methods that might suit students with differing requirements and ambitions.