Advertisement

Sky Data poll: One in three Britons say university 'not worth it'

One third of Britons - including more than half of 18-24 year-olds - think the cost of university is not worth it for people currently considering applying, a Sky Data poll reveals.

Just over half - 54% - say university it still worth it, but 35% now say that it is not. Among 18-24-year-olds, 53% say it is not worth it, while 39% say it is.

Among those who have already been to university, 76% said it was worth it, while 22% said it was not.

The gap was much smaller among younger people, however, with six in 10 of university attendees aged 18-34 saying it was worth it, compared with well over eight in 10 among older graduates.

Meanwhile, almost two thirds of the British public want tuition fees lowered or scrapped.

:: Universities warned over 67% dropout rates

Some 63% want lower or no tuition fees, 34% want lower fees, while 29% would like them scrapped altogether.

One in five (20%) think they should stay the same as they currently are, while 3% think they should be higher.

Among Conservative voters, 50% want lower fees (34%) or no fees (16%), compared with 40% who would keep the fees as they are (34%) or raise them (6%).

:: Scottish universities under 'financial stress'

Younger voters are perhaps unsurprisingly more likely to support lower fees, though most support such a move across every age group.

There is less support for cancelling debts for recent graduates, however, with 38% supporting such a move and 47% opposing it.

:: Sky Views: U-bends not uni could be way to go

Sky Data interviewed a nationally representative sample of 1,688 Sky customers online 25-29 August 2017. Data are weighted to the profile of the population.