Why worries over student debt drove me to question politicians
BBCTeenagers wanting to go to university are left fearing the consequences of debt, with one 18-year-old so worried, he went on TV to ask politicians for answers.
Sixth former Sam Jones, from Llay near Wrexham, asked the panel, drawn from Wales' six biggest parties, what they planned to do to help support young people so they are "not racking up obscene amounts of debt".
Jones said he had spent a lot of time debating whether he should go to university because of the amount of debt he would have to pay after, and was considering dropping his higher education plans in favour of an apprenticeship, but decided he needed a degree for a career in the civil service.
The Welsh government has called its living costs support "the most generous" in the UK, while NUS Cymru said it would like to see "more ambition" from political parties standing in the election.
"It was a question that had to be asked," said Jones, who feels he is being forced to take on a substantial amount of debt to get a degree so he can pursue his chosen career.
He said going for jobs in certain sectors meant "you're forced to have the debt".
As a member of the BBC Wales Your Voice live debate programme in March, he said he asked the question because "lots of people my age want to have a response from the people who are actually making the decisions".
"Lots of people that probably should go to university have decided not to because they can't financially justify it.
"We're kind of as a society depriving ourselves of the people who are going to be the next great scientists, the next great teachers.
"I think it's quite sad."
Concerns have grown about student debt after a decision by the UK government to freeze the threshold at which some English graduates start repaying loans.
The Welsh government said it would not follow suit, adding it supported a subsequent UK government move to cap interest on the loans at 6%.
But a light has been shone on debt levels and repayment terms for students more generally.
"I think it's really brought it to the forefront," said Jones.
His mum, Amanda, was alarmed by some of the headlines.
"As a parent having tried to find information, I find it's very difficult to find – the system's very difficult to navigate and it's quite frightening."
Although she acknowledges repayment terms are different to bank loans and debt is written off after 30 years, "it's really difficult to get yourself away from that mindset of 'I've borrowed £65,000, therefore I will need to pay that back'".
As a teacher she had found herself in the unfamiliar position of questioning whether going to higher education was the best option for Sam, with her feelings "continuing to be very mixed".
"I do waiver. I waiver on a daily basis. Should he do this?"
However, she said at the same time she saw the positives.
"It's a massive opportunity for him to secure his future and actually do what he enjoys doing," she said.
Jones, who will be sitting A-level exams in the coming weeks, was looking forward to the next chapter but was "worried about the consequences".
"I'm excited to actually go to university to learn, meet new people and pursue an academic interest I already love so much.
"I feel very worried, very concerned about what my life afterwards is going to be like money-wise, repaying this," he said.
Sam ThomasSam Thomas, 19, from Bridgend got in touch with BBC Your Voice saying the key election issue for him was "whether Wales is investing properly in its students, so we can invest our future back into Wales".
In his second year studying at Bristol University, he feels education has been "overshadowed" by other issues but wants to know how parties would make sure there were opportunities for young people.
"Uni is brilliant, but I think student loans and the cost of living for university in general is putting people off.
"It's a bit of a lose-lose situation because you go to uni and get a degree in the hopes you'll get a good and well-paid job.
"And at the moment you come out of university and you might struggle to find a job," he said.
On average, Welsh students owe £40,000 when they graduate, which is lower than the £53,000 for English students.
According to one expert, Wales' student maintenance system was "very generous", with Welsh students also getting more help with living costs than their English counterparts.
Gavin Conlon, from consultancy London Economics, said the cost of higher education was becoming "very significant" for governments, describing the current Welsh ministers' decision not to freeze loan repayment thresholds as "brave".
He said the next government's student finance policy could be constrained by "very complicated" Treasury rules, adding that Wales was currently at its "credit limit".
But the president of the National Union of Students in Wales said he would like to see more ambition from political parties in plans to support students.
"We're already seeing Wales out of all of the UK nations with the lowest rate of 18-year-olds going to university," said Dewi Owen.
He added that as well as depriving the Welsh economy out of skilled workers, it had implications for young people's prospects.
"I think what we risk is a generation being left behind."
Alexander McLeanFirst year student Alexander McLean, 18, also raised a point about student finance at the debate in Wrexham.
He said some students were not able to socialise or even pay membership fees for societies because of cost pressures.
He has decided not to do a year abroad as part of his international relations course in Liverpool, because of the cost.
"The system itself needs changing because it's something that doesn't just affect people's decisions to study abroad, it also affects their decision to go to university in the first place," he said.
He believes the maintenance support he gets is much better than his peers from England, but he would like to see the free tuition Scottish students get if they study in Scotland.
McLean added the graduate jobs market was also a worry.
"It's scary to think that I could be doing these essays, these exams, going through all this stress trying to work out everything with the money... the student finance, all for it to just come to nothing because there's not enough jobs for people.
"It's quite a scary prospect."
Dewi Knight, director of PolicyWise and a former Welsh government adviser said there was a "lack of detail in the manifestos" when it came to student finance.
He said the issue should be viewed in the context of a more general "unfairness" facing young people.
"We look at getting on the housing ladder, the job market, general living costs... if you add in student debt and student finance then clearly that is a bigger issue in terms of young people's place within the economy and society."
What do the political parties say?
The Welsh Conservatives said they would work with the UK government "to cut excessive interest rates on student debts".
They would also pilot discounted fees for science, technology, engineering and maths subject, as well as refunding fees for some healthcare and teaching students "who study in Wales and go on to work in the Welsh NHS or Welsh schools for at least five years".
A Welsh Labour spokesperson said it would "continue the most generous non-repayable student maintenance grants anywhere in the UK, so background does not limit ambition".
It said the Welsh Labour government had "ensured Wales has a unique and progressive student finance system".
A Plaid Cymru spokesperson said it would commission an independent review of higher education funding to "improve access to higher education for everyone, protecting students from disadvantaged backgrounds and ensuring students are supported to study here in Wales".
It promised to make higher education sustainable with universities currently "on the brink".
Wales' Green Party said it "ultimately supports free higher education, ending the burden of excessive student debt", but in the meantime added it would "maximise a student finance partial cancellation scheme within the limits of devolved powers" and increase maintenance support for students studying in Wales.
Reform UK's Senedd election manifesto said it would ensure university courses were value for money and "the content of courses is sufficiently equipping graduates for the workplace".
It also promised to put universities on a "sustainable financial footing".
The Welsh Liberal Democrats' manifesto said they would increase access to university-level education and would keep "the most generous system of student finance anywhere in the UK for Welsh students - no matter where they study".
