The cost of a degree

sir – Vivienne Stern, CEO of Universities UK (Letters, April 11), may be correct that those in favour of restricting places today often benefited from a university education themselves.

However, they are likely to have done so at a time when a university degree – and the university you attended – were actually valued, because of the limited numbers of both and the strict entry requirements.

Secondly, why are 88 per cent of new jobs expected to require graduates, as her research suggests? Apprenticeships and traineeships used to be seen as a route to a career, but they have been devalued. The Labour Party must take its share of the blame for this, having pledged in 2001 to achieve a rate of 50 per cent of young people attending university.

Thirdly, Ms Stern suggests that “young people should be given the same opportunities as the generations before them”. I would remind her that, until 1998, all university education in Britain was free. Currently, fees at most British universities are set at £9,000 per annum. By all means provide the same opportunities, but ensure that fees are lowered and students are offered the same quality of education that previous generations enjoyed.

Jane Cooper

London N19

sir – It is time for a different attitude to learning and work.

I did not go to university but have made five career changes, keeping on top of training and professional qualifications as I went along. This was an efficient and effective way to do it. All my contemporaries have degrees, but I have done just as well as any of them.

What young people really need is a wide-ranging education up to the age of 18, which leaves them confident and capable of choosing their own path. There will always be a demand for particular skills that require a university education, but in many cases such an education is not necessary. Shirley Batten-Smith Watford, Hertfordshire