Thousands protest through Birmingham City Centre

Nearly 4,000 people marched through Birmingham yesterday in a public protest on their way to a rally staged at the National Indoor Arena against cuts to pensions, jobs and other services. Amongst them were also students, joining the protest to voice their opposition to the increase in Tuition Fees.



They feel the Government are leading them astray, making University unnecessarily unaffordable. Fees are planned to increase to £9,000 in 2012, funding is due to be cut and class sizes are also set to see increases, meaning a significant reduction in one-to-one tuition.

We headed down to the scene of the rally and spoke to a few of the students involved. Here are a few things they had to say for themselves:

“I’m worried my parents won’t let me go to University if the fees are too high. A Student Loan is only a temporary solution which will stay with me forever, and they don’t want that.” – Samantha, 18



“At the end of the day, the Government is taking advantage of us, and its wrong” – Marcus, 17"

These comments come from a concerned youth who face a difficult decision when they finish their A-levels. But what of the older students, who have already graduated and want to further their studies? They are faced with an even greater dilemma, as prices for Masters Degrees are also incredibly high, and financial aid through a second Student Loan is not an option for them.
 
“All we can do is apply for Bursaries or Scholarships which can help, but generally the cost is so high that the amount we have to put up ourselves is too much, it’s ridiculous.” – Pritika, 22



An MBA with us costs as little as £2,500. Naturally students were surprised and glad to hear there were other options like us to consider when making these hard choices for their futures. It doesn’t have to be so hard, you can study while you work and ultimately better yourself for a stronger career without breaking the bank.

Protests are set to continue, but with the main focus on pension and job cuts, it is likely the student’s voices will take a back seat.