In this morning’s Western Mail, Plaid Cymru’s South Wales Central Assembly Member, Chris Franks, highlights the large numbers of students who drop out of Welsh universities each year.
He tells the paper that the figures indicate that some students have taken the wrong courses, however the universities themselves say that the reasons are more fundamental. The director of marketing and student recruitment at the University of Glamorgan explains that students at his university come from a range of socioeconomic backgrounds and as such have to juggle part-time jobs, families and financial concerns. In other words debt and the fear of debt plays a major part in the decision to drop out.
Is it possible that Plaid Cymru’s decision to abandon their principles and support the introduction of top-up fees for Welsh students will make things worse? In retrospect Chris Frank’s intervention in this matter could well be an own-goal. If students have problems now then they will be even worse off once the Labour-Plaid Cymru Government starts creating mortgage-sized debts that they will have to pay off once they graduate. How will that affect drop-out rates?
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