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Recent research, external from Hepi and AdvanceHE suggests that 45% of undergraduate students think the value for money of their course is "good" or "very good", up from 37% last year and the highest proportion recorded in more than ten years.
Whether or not university can be considered "worth it" will vary from person to person, depending on what they want to get out of it.
When thinking about the financial cost, it's important to consider that, once graduates earn a certain amount, they are required to pay back student loans over a period of up to 40 years. MPs launched an inquiry into student loans in England this year amid "widespread dissatisfaction" over repayment terms.
In general, graduates can expect to earn more than non-graduates, according to government statistics from 2024., external
Median pay for working-age graduates rose to £42,000 in 2024, ahead of the £30,500 earned by non-graduates - though this data does not account for external factors, like prior academic attainment.
However, the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), external has said that when taking account of inflation, graduate wages have declined in real terms - and the level of the decline varies depending on which job you're in.
When measured against prices in 2015, graduates surveyed in 2022 were earning £448 per year less on average than their counterparts who graduated three years earlier.
Earnings also depend on the subject studied and university attended.
Research published in 2020 by the IFS think tank, external in England suggests that, on average, women who study creative arts and languages degrees earn the same amount in their lifetime as if they had not gone to university.
In contrast, women who study law, economics or medicine earn over £250,000 more during their career than if they did not have a degree.
Men who studied creative arts on average earn less across their lifetimes than if they had not attended university. Male medicine or economics graduates earn £500,000 more.
