Two weeks is a long time in politics, and much has changed since I posted my campaign video. I was very pleased to win the position of Academic Affairs Officer by 766 votes, with my 1900+ votes the highest of all executive candidates. Thanks to everyone who voted for me, postered for me and supported me, especially my unexpected campaign manager Chris Jenkinson.
It looks like I'll have my work cut out for me. A new report out today has shown that two thirds of university vice-chancellors want to raise the cap on fees, with one in ten wanting it completely removed so that they can charge what they want. These proposals would put students in unbelievable amounts of debt, whilst we are still in the middle of a recession and jobs are hard to come by. I am one of the first year group to have paid top-up fees and as such will graduate in a few months with £20,000 debt. Imagine how much more debt students in future years will have hanging like a millstone around their necks: if the average amount that the VCs want (£6,500) is enforced, including a maintenance loan of around £15,000 this takes debt up to £35,000 even without things like savings or overdrafts. That kind of investment could quite possibly never be paid off, and a lot of poorer students will simply not go to university.
I find it shocking that Charles Clarke can claim a victory on fees: he said that the government "won" the debate on fees because "only a few years afterwards there is very little criticism of [tuition fees]". How can this even be an argument when the tuition fee "guinea pigs" have yet to graduate? We simply do not know what the effects of top-up fees will be on this year's graduates when they leave. Let the experiment play through, Charles, before you proclaim it a success. Counting chickens, anyone?
I also reject the argument that tuition fees paid back when the graduate is working allows a contribution from those who have benefited from higher education. What about all the people (such as government ministers) who benefited from free higher education? If the new generation has to pay, why don't they? Higher education is a right, not a privilege, and shouldn't depend upon your parents' pay-packet or social class. Passing off more of the cost onto students so that they are crippled by debt before even starting their careers is not the answer. The only fair solution is for those who already benefit through higher wages to pay higher taxes: the Liberal Democrats' old(?) policy on a 50p tax rate on all earnings over £100,000 would be much fairer than imposing such a huge burden on students just starting out in life.
The University of Manchester says NO to increased tuition fees!
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/group.php?gid=78455895589&ref=mf
Saturday, 14 March 2009
Wednesday, 4 March 2009
Tuesday, 24 February 2009
Another brick in the wall...of debt
This article in Student Direct prompted me to re-read NUS's "Broke and Broken" report that I had flicked through at course rep conference. If I was in Manchester I would have added my £20,000 to the wall. According to the SD article, the average graduate debt is £17,500: as my year group are the first to graduate having paid £3,000 top-up fees, I imagine that this year's figure will be substantially higher. I work at a fairly highly-paid job (nearly £9 per hour) for 15 hours per week, and I am still precariously balanced near the bottom of my overdraft, so I can't fathom how anyone can afford NOT to work whilst doing their degree. Students who work have less time to devote to personal study or voluntary activities, therefore their degree classes and CVs often suffer simply because they have to finance their own education.
This isn't just about students from the most disadvantaged backgrounds, although undeniably the current fee system has some effect on these students' decision to enter HE. Students whose parents earn just above the threshold to receive grants often receive no help from their family; similarly, those students whose families disagree with their decision to enter HE will often have no support from either family or government. Raising the cap on fees would only exacerbate problems like this.
Fundamentally, I disagree with the marketization of higher education. The best education should not be bought; it should be accessible on merit alone, else (as written in the NUS report) the class divides in this country will only become more exaggerated: the rich will get richer (and their children more likely to afford a better university), the poor and disadvantaged will have to settle for cheaper universities resulting in poorly paid jobs and will get poorer. Not only this, but the current idea of a "market" has failed abysmally: nearly all institutions charge the full whack for all their courses. Who's to say that raising the cap wouldn't simply result in all the Russell Group charging the top rate and pricing students from poorer backgrounds right out of the market?
It is sad that the current generation of students is being forced to consider higher education as some kind of marketable commodity. As seen at Cambridge, it is likely to cause a dearth of students taking certain "niche" subjects and the broad variety of subjects researched in the country will diminish. The more that is charged for a degree, the more students will hope to earn at the end of it, maning that some career paths such as academia or the public sector will become less popular and diminish in value.
Whichever way you look at it, subjecting education to the ravages of the free market strips it of its ontological value: there should be more to a degree than value for money and employability at the end of it. Education should be free and equally accessible to all, not contingent on how much you or your family can afford to spend.
I may add more tomorrow, but I am tired. This post, however, has to end with:
All in all, it's just another brick in the wall.
This isn't just about students from the most disadvantaged backgrounds, although undeniably the current fee system has some effect on these students' decision to enter HE. Students whose parents earn just above the threshold to receive grants often receive no help from their family; similarly, those students whose families disagree with their decision to enter HE will often have no support from either family or government. Raising the cap on fees would only exacerbate problems like this.
Fundamentally, I disagree with the marketization of higher education. The best education should not be bought; it should be accessible on merit alone, else (as written in the NUS report) the class divides in this country will only become more exaggerated: the rich will get richer (and their children more likely to afford a better university), the poor and disadvantaged will have to settle for cheaper universities resulting in poorly paid jobs and will get poorer. Not only this, but the current idea of a "market" has failed abysmally: nearly all institutions charge the full whack for all their courses. Who's to say that raising the cap wouldn't simply result in all the Russell Group charging the top rate and pricing students from poorer backgrounds right out of the market?
It is sad that the current generation of students is being forced to consider higher education as some kind of marketable commodity. As seen at Cambridge, it is likely to cause a dearth of students taking certain "niche" subjects and the broad variety of subjects researched in the country will diminish. The more that is charged for a degree, the more students will hope to earn at the end of it, maning that some career paths such as academia or the public sector will become less popular and diminish in value.
Whichever way you look at it, subjecting education to the ravages of the free market strips it of its ontological value: there should be more to a degree than value for money and employability at the end of it. Education should be free and equally accessible to all, not contingent on how much you or your family can afford to spend.
I may add more tomorrow, but I am tired. This post, however, has to end with:
All in all, it's just another brick in the wall.
Thursday, 19 February 2009
Conference, elections and appendices
I've been notably absent from the WWW for the past few weeks, firstly due to exams and then due to getting stuck into my dissertation reading. Finally I'm BACK and likely to be lingering for a while, due to circumstances beyond my control.
Last weekend was not only the much-reviled feast of St Valentine - for young liberals everywhere it was much more significant as the first Liberal Youth conference of 2009. Unfortunately, I was struck down with appendicitis after only attending a training session on the first night, so for the rest of the weekend and the first half of this week I was stuck in Warwick Hospital recovering from my emergency operation. Just my luck, eh? This also means that I've been forced to remain at my parents' house for two weeks in case someone bashes into me and opens the stitches, or something. Hence, boredom and increased online presence.
Due to my enforced regime of sleeping, throwing up and morphine, I had to very nicely ask Chris to submit my manifesto for me. There was no way I was missing out on a position I really want for the sake of a 5cm piece of intestine! So I'm now officially one of two candidates for UMSU Academic Affairs Officer 2009-10. I wrote a manifesto that I really believe in, and that I hope appeals to the average "normal" student and shows that I want to do the job to further students' education rather than polish my own political CV.
Also, re: the campaign: I hope it stays civilised. I don't want to be drawn into a slanging match and won't be baited: I'll stick with the issues I stand for as I think that they matter to students, and that a positive campaign on the issues is far more likely to benefit me and to engage more students in the voting process.
Discussion of my manifesto pledges to follow.
Last weekend was not only the much-reviled feast of St Valentine - for young liberals everywhere it was much more significant as the first Liberal Youth conference of 2009. Unfortunately, I was struck down with appendicitis after only attending a training session on the first night, so for the rest of the weekend and the first half of this week I was stuck in Warwick Hospital recovering from my emergency operation. Just my luck, eh? This also means that I've been forced to remain at my parents' house for two weeks in case someone bashes into me and opens the stitches, or something. Hence, boredom and increased online presence.
Due to my enforced regime of sleeping, throwing up and morphine, I had to very nicely ask Chris to submit my manifesto for me. There was no way I was missing out on a position I really want for the sake of a 5cm piece of intestine! So I'm now officially one of two candidates for UMSU Academic Affairs Officer 2009-10. I wrote a manifesto that I really believe in, and that I hope appeals to the average "normal" student and shows that I want to do the job to further students' education rather than polish my own political CV.
Also, re: the campaign: I hope it stays civilised. I don't want to be drawn into a slanging match and won't be baited: I'll stick with the issues I stand for as I think that they matter to students, and that a positive campaign on the issues is far more likely to benefit me and to engage more students in the voting process.
Discussion of my manifesto pledges to follow.
Sunday, 25 January 2009
Revision burnout
So I got tired of revision today. I've been at it since before Christmas, and I'm certain that my performance in Friday's EC law exam does not demonstrate that to my satisfaction. I decided to give myself a quick break (that didn't involve sleeping, despite my ever-present fatigue) and write some rubbish about what to do when these exams are over.
First of all, I've got to write a manifesto. Having read Chris's the idea scares me as I'm not very good at self-promotion. I've got a few things I stand for, but writing them down and making it so LONG is the hard part! Definitely won't be doing that yet as my brain hurts :(
Second (and much less important): I have grown bored of my hair again and wish to be a platinum blonde. Yes, drastic I know, but I've never done it and some people make it look amazing. So, here's the idea:
+
=
Unfortunately, dyed black hair is the hardest to turn blonde - you go ginger :( so I need to see a hairdresser rather than order Manic Panic bleach off the internet like I'd like to. Boooo.
Hmm, what else..oh yes, I have plans for two more tattoos: a triquetra on my right wrist to balance out the symbol on my left; and an ouroboros (that looks like Snakey!) on the back of my neck.
A quick timetable, then:
February: Write manifesto, enter nominations, begin campaign. Come up with dissertation proposal and start reading. Attend lectures and seminars. Attend LY conference on 13th.
March: Campaign in earnest. Elections. Write dissertation outline. Turn 21. Go to Holland on 19th. Plan and begin reading for politics essay.
April: Go to San Francisco on 6th. Write politics essay. Apply for jobs for next year if campaign unsuccessful. Write dissertation. Revise for exams.
May: Take exams. Finalise and hand in dissertation. Hand in notice if campaign successful. Continue applying for jobs if not.
Fun times. Oh well, at least Holland and San Francisco will be amusante! Here's a picture of the type of room in the hotel we're going to (in Nob Hill, hee hee):
First of all, I've got to write a manifesto. Having read Chris's the idea scares me as I'm not very good at self-promotion. I've got a few things I stand for, but writing them down and making it so LONG is the hard part! Definitely won't be doing that yet as my brain hurts :(
Second (and much less important): I have grown bored of my hair again and wish to be a platinum blonde. Yes, drastic I know, but I've never done it and some people make it look amazing. So, here's the idea:
Unfortunately, dyed black hair is the hardest to turn blonde - you go ginger :( so I need to see a hairdresser rather than order Manic Panic bleach off the internet like I'd like to. Boooo.
Hmm, what else..oh yes, I have plans for two more tattoos: a triquetra on my right wrist to balance out the symbol on my left; and an ouroboros (that looks like Snakey!) on the back of my neck.
A quick timetable, then:
February: Write manifesto, enter nominations, begin campaign. Come up with dissertation proposal and start reading. Attend lectures and seminars. Attend LY conference on 13th.
March: Campaign in earnest. Elections. Write dissertation outline. Turn 21. Go to Holland on 19th. Plan and begin reading for politics essay.
April: Go to San Francisco on 6th. Write politics essay. Apply for jobs for next year if campaign unsuccessful. Write dissertation. Revise for exams.
May: Take exams. Finalise and hand in dissertation. Hand in notice if campaign successful. Continue applying for jobs if not.
Fun times. Oh well, at least Holland and San Francisco will be amusante! Here's a picture of the type of room in the hotel we're going to (in Nob Hill, hee hee):
Thursday, 8 January 2009
Words, glorious words
I've been thinking about words, for no particular reason, recently. The French word "gagné(e)" means both "won" and "earned", which struck me as strange. Surely "won" has some underlying connotation of luck and contest, whereas "earned" suggests just rewards for work done. It is possible to win something without earning it - for example, if somebody wins an election without spending any time campaigning then they have won, but not earned their victory. Thus winning is absent of any moral considerations whatsoever, but earning has implicit moral overtones concerning the moral value of work and effort in getting one's rewards.
No, it's not relevant to anything in particular, I just found it an interesting thing to ponder as I walked home the other evening. If it's relevant to anything at all, it could be spuriously linked to my hunt for a training contract: I have expended hours filling in forms, researching firms, sending emails and keeping up to date with business news. I have to prepare extensively for each interview, as well as ensuring I work hard enough at uni to get the all-important 2:1. This is why I feel that the common usage of "winning" to describe obtaining a training contract is slightly harsh. There is most definitely an aspect of luck and a high aspect of contest, however the reason I get one (if ever I do) will be because of the work I have put in. This is why such jobs are earned, not won.
It's all the same to the French, though. Lucky bastards.
No, it's not relevant to anything in particular, I just found it an interesting thing to ponder as I walked home the other evening. If it's relevant to anything at all, it could be spuriously linked to my hunt for a training contract: I have expended hours filling in forms, researching firms, sending emails and keeping up to date with business news. I have to prepare extensively for each interview, as well as ensuring I work hard enough at uni to get the all-important 2:1. This is why I feel that the common usage of "winning" to describe obtaining a training contract is slightly harsh. There is most definitely an aspect of luck and a high aspect of contest, however the reason I get one (if ever I do) will be because of the work I have put in. This is why such jobs are earned, not won.
It's all the same to the French, though. Lucky bastards.
Saturday, 3 January 2009
Standard end-of-year retrospective
2008: another year over, a new one just begun, to quote John Lennon. I don't make new year's resolutions, never have: firstly because my new year theoretically begins on November 1st and de facto begins some time in late September; secondly because everyone knows they're going to break their self-imposed rules at some point, otherwise only one set of resolutions would have ever been made and everyone would be excruciatingly slim, punctual, polite and well-read. So instead, I take the slightly different tack of seeing what's changed in the last year and my hopes for the next year.
2008 was a year of many changes, and I think I am a completely different person to the one I was on 3rd January 2008.
In the last year I have overcome a serious illness to become once more a functioning member of society.
My friendship group has changed dramatically: I have been able to finally free myself from caring how others perceive me.
I have become much more active in politics, culminating in my appointment as Chair of Liberal Youth Manchester, chairing a meeting with Nick Clegg and organising a group of people when a year ago I couldn't even organise myself.
I have made some valuable friends and acquaintances through my more active involvement in student and local politics, and through finally joining the Rock Society.
I have lived on my own for the first time in my life and discovered that I love it - I feel that I finally have the freedom to live exactly as I wish.
My dad was diagnosed with testicular cancer (eventually) and had an operation. This is the first time my family's been touched by serious illness and it helped me realise how much I value them.
I've gained a Snakey who I love and moved my guinea pig to Manchester to complete my little home.
I've been in, out, in, out and finally in again the most serious relationship of my life with my best friend, someone who completely changed my views on love, fidelity and commitment, and whom I can't envisage life without.
My best (girl)friend had a beautiful baby boy in May who I absolutely adore and is in the process of curing my babyphobia!
I've had to become realistic about careers in my final year: my application for the Civil Service was rejected so I bit the bullet and started applying for training contracts. I had my first interview in December and, although I felt confident, I was unsuccessful. Hopefully 2009 will bring more success.
I've lived in Manchester for the whole of 2008, the first year I've spent outside the Fylde for summer holidays. I've had a taste of fulltime work in a real job for the first time (Morrisons doesn't count!)
My grandmother moved away from the house in Walsall where she'd cared for her mother for the last 18 years and came to live in St Annes, meaning I get to see more of her (yay!) and she's getting healthier and much happier (yay!)
My hair's gone from red, to brown, to black, and faded to dark brown. Oh yeah, I got my first tattoo and have plans for a couple more.
Hope(s) for the Future (see Marillion - This Strange Engine for the track)
This year is a scary one. I'm going to graduate in 6 months or so, and need to get a job. My ideal scenario is winning a training contract for 2011 as soon as possible so I can reeeelax.
I also hope to fight a good campaign and win the post of Academic Affairs Officer at UMSU. I hope my feedback campaign is a success and enables students to get more from their university.
I hope the Marillion weekend in Holland is as much fun as it promises to be!
2008 was a year of many changes, and I think I am a completely different person to the one I was on 3rd January 2008.
In the last year I have overcome a serious illness to become once more a functioning member of society.
My friendship group has changed dramatically: I have been able to finally free myself from caring how others perceive me.
I have become much more active in politics, culminating in my appointment as Chair of Liberal Youth Manchester, chairing a meeting with Nick Clegg and organising a group of people when a year ago I couldn't even organise myself.
I have made some valuable friends and acquaintances through my more active involvement in student and local politics, and through finally joining the Rock Society.
I have lived on my own for the first time in my life and discovered that I love it - I feel that I finally have the freedom to live exactly as I wish.
My dad was diagnosed with testicular cancer (eventually) and had an operation. This is the first time my family's been touched by serious illness and it helped me realise how much I value them.
I've gained a Snakey who I love and moved my guinea pig to Manchester to complete my little home.
I've been in, out, in, out and finally in again the most serious relationship of my life with my best friend, someone who completely changed my views on love, fidelity and commitment, and whom I can't envisage life without.
My best (girl)friend had a beautiful baby boy in May who I absolutely adore and is in the process of curing my babyphobia!
I've had to become realistic about careers in my final year: my application for the Civil Service was rejected so I bit the bullet and started applying for training contracts. I had my first interview in December and, although I felt confident, I was unsuccessful. Hopefully 2009 will bring more success.
I've lived in Manchester for the whole of 2008, the first year I've spent outside the Fylde for summer holidays. I've had a taste of fulltime work in a real job for the first time (Morrisons doesn't count!)
My grandmother moved away from the house in Walsall where she'd cared for her mother for the last 18 years and came to live in St Annes, meaning I get to see more of her (yay!) and she's getting healthier and much happier (yay!)
My hair's gone from red, to brown, to black, and faded to dark brown. Oh yeah, I got my first tattoo and have plans for a couple more.
Hope(s) for the Future (see Marillion - This Strange Engine for the track)
This year is a scary one. I'm going to graduate in 6 months or so, and need to get a job. My ideal scenario is winning a training contract for 2011 as soon as possible so I can reeeelax.
I also hope to fight a good campaign and win the post of Academic Affairs Officer at UMSU. I hope my feedback campaign is a success and enables students to get more from their university.
I hope the Marillion weekend in Holland is as much fun as it promises to be!
I hope that James and I can make our relationship work after graduation despite our different career paths.
I hope I don't run out of money before the SLC start chasing me!
I hope everyone I know is happy, healthy and prosperous.
The End. See you next year :)
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