New research has revealed that the total cost of Australia’s most popular degrees is set to soar over the next decade.
The report, by ASG, the largest provider of education scholarship plans in Australia, forecasts that the overall cost of a university education for students who rent will jump 29% in the next decade.
Meantime, it’s estimated the total cost of a university education for students who live at home while studying will increase 23% by 2028.
ASG considered a range of variables to determine the total estimated cost of Australia’s most popular degrees including course fees, rent, transport, food, computers, study placements and extra-curricular activities.
The following degrees are included in the ASG Planning for University Index:
- Journalism;
- Nursing;
- Photography;
- Engineering;
- Industrial Design;
- Occupational Therapy;
- Accountancy;
- Law;
- Vet Science;
- Dentistry;
- Medicine.
ASG CEO, Tim Mitchell-Adams, said the biggest impact on students who live outside of capital cities and those who want to buy or rent homes when they finish school.
“There is upwards of 29% increases for regional students, which is realty problematic when we have a large country and lots of regional students,” Mitchell-Adams told The Educator.
“However, the other important factor is the calculation of all the hidden costs of a child going to university. Most people think largely just about the course fees and forget about the transport, technology required, the books, living expenses and so on.”
He said these factors are overlooked by parents and students when they undertake a degree.
So why is the cost of degrees soaring?
Mitchell-Adams pointed to the overall cost of living, rising education costs and decreased funding for schools as contributing factors in a “perfect storm”.
“We’re in an environment where we have the rising cost of housing in Australia, and another big issue brewing is that many students will be coming out of university with large HELP debts which may affect their ability to rent or buy a home,” he said.
“This is because that debt may influence the way banks assess their availability or propensity to offer funding for those loans.”
Mitchell-Adams said this is a conversation that today’s students needs to be having with parents.
“These conversations should really be taking place in the junior years of high school. If this conversation is had in the later years of schooling, it’s likely to be too late,” he said.