Loan scheme 'no guarantee' of improved access

A loan scheme could be ineffective among lower income students, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development has warned.

The warning comes as the Government considers whether to introduce fees or loans from next year.

The latest ‘Education at a Glance’ report says a key issue for many OECD countries is higher education grants or student loans.

Supporters of loans say they lead to more aid being available and an increase in overall access.

But a US study which found that loans are effective among middle and upper middle income students but ineffective among those on lower incomes. The opposite is true for higher education grants.

The repayment period varies from less than 10 years in Belgium and New Zealand to 20 years or more in Norway and Sweden. Some countries, such as the UK and Australia, make repayment dependent on graduates’ level of income.

As disclosed in the Irish Independent on Monday, a forthcoming report from the Economic and Social Research Institute highlights the poor levels of participation in college by children of non-manual workers like bus drivers and conductors, dental nurses, waiters and despatch clerks.

This report says any change in current policy needs to take account of any possible disincentive to participation in higher education.

Source

www.independent.ie