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We need to talk about money: Are universities actually worth it?
This week, two significant and interesting reports hit the world of higher education.
The first is Are universities worth it? A review of the evidence and policy options by David Willetts. The second is the 2025 Student Money and Wellbeing Report by Blackbullion.
One is an intelligent, articulate and well-researched piece, which provides a compelling analysis of the current state of higher education. It concludes that all is fine; media and political hype around the problems with degrees and university funding have got it all wrong, and university and the way it is currently funded is undeniably a good thing.
The other is a report that is barely more sophisticated than a master's dissertation, but manages to press exactly the right buttons, needling its way into finding precisely the financial problems that students face in their daily lives, and how it impacts their studies.
10 amazing resources for making better university decisions
There are loads of league tables out there, and plenty of commercially driven so-called university advice sites out there.
But quite frankly, so many of them have lazy journalism, trotting out the same bland advice, or worse still, are filled with so many university promotions or “recommended unis”, that you can’t tell what’s impartial advice and what is paid-for advertising.
It’s tempting to name and shame the worst of these, but instead I thought I’d highlight some of the best, most genuinely useful resources.