Oxford University formally signals rise to £9,000 fees

The University of Oxford has become the fourth institution in the country to officially announce a rise of tuition fees to the maximum figure of £9,000,

Following in the footsteps of Imperial, Cambridge and, most recently, Exeter, Oxford’s move to increase the fees for home and EU students has been anticipated since the beginning of February, following a debate held by students and senior university figures. The university unveiled its proposals earlier this week, confirming the proposed tuition charge for a year of undergraduate study to be £9,000. Alongside this, the university revealed its plans for making financial help readily available to English students from less privileged backgrounds.

Students joining the university from households with an income of less than £16,000 will be required to pay a subsidised figure of £3,500 for their first year of study, with this amount rising to £6,000 for the following years.

Those from a household income of less than £25,000 will receive a reduction in the tuition fees, with students from a household earning more than this being required to pay the full £9,000.

However, those from a household income of less than £42,600 will receive a means-tested bursary. It is expected that approximately 10% of students will receive the highest available bursary of £4,300 in their first year, falling to £3,300 thereafter.

Fee reduction and bursary support for students from the rest of the United Kingdom and European Economic Area countries is listed on the university’s website as ‘still being reviewed’.

Oxford’s proposals are subject to approval by the Office for Fair Access (OFFA), with this caveat also applying to the other universities wishing to charge more than £6,000. Confirmation is expected by the end of July.

Professor Andrew Hamilton, Vice-Chancellor of the university, wrote an online statement in response to the proposals, stating, “It is deeply regrettable, as the University has made clear, that the Government is reducing drastically direct public investment in university teaching.”

“Excellence is not cheap and the funding gap is wide. This means that in reaching difficult judgements about how to deal with immediate challenges, Oxford also has to be attentive to longer-term ones.”