Students 'could be put off university' by confusion over fees, warns Martin Lewis

Confusion over the system of tuition fees in 2012 could be putting students off university, warns Martin Lewis.?Photo: REX FEATURES

Martin Lewis, the consumer expert, said students were “ill-equipped and uneducated” about how the new system would work next year.

From 2012, English universities will be able to charge up to ￡9,000 a year – almost three times the current amount.

Graduates will pay back loans when they earn ￡21,000 and make smaller monthly repayments than at present. Debts will also take much longer to clear but will be written off after 30 years.

Mr Lewis, who has been named the new head of the Independent Taskforce on Student Finance Information, said he was “no fan of the changes”.

But he insisted that the myths surrounding the practical finances of the system “may well end up more damaging to prospective students’ aspirations than the new fees themselves”.

It came as a poll of almost 2,000 adults, published by the taskforce today, found almost six-in-10 had little or no understanding of how the new fees system would work.

More than a quarter – 26 per cent – wrongly thought that students would have to pay their fees upfront and more than half said the system would make going to university less attractive.

The disclosure comes despite the fact that applications have already closed for some courses – including those to Oxbridge – and most students are expected to apply by January.

It also comes amid continuing uncertainty over fee levels at some universities.

Some 27 un-named institutions are yet to confirm their final average fees after submitting revised plans to the Government’s Office for Fair Access, it was confirmed this week.

Mr Lewis, head of Money Saving Expert, said: "The communication of tuition fees by all parties over the last few years is a national scandal.

"They've left us as a nation ill-equipped and uneducated about how this crucial and very different form of finance works.

"We need to start a war on this ignorance. After all, if students don't understand the true cost, how can they decide if it's worth it."