If you were a British citizen at a UK university a quarter of a century ago, you would have paid no tuition fees for your first degree. But as higher education expanded, the ‘right’ to a free university education was inevitably called into question. As a result of spending restraints, the axe finally fell upon this once ‘sacred cow’, and the decision was made to, effectively, tax graduates. University fees would now be borne by the student not the taxpayer. The amount Universities could levy was limited, but in 2012 this ‘cap’ is set to be increased threefold. Though it was claimed that that only the most sought-after courses would attract a £9,000 fee, many more colleges than expected have decided to raise fees to the new ceiling. This is partly a consequence of having suffered a severe cut in their own central government grant. 
Cutting funding to universities whilst giving them licence to increase charges was only likely to have one outcome: more student debt, as administrators naturally wished to avoid making lay-offs among university staffs. Exponential fees inflation is likely to have consequences beyond the anticipated changing of the student demographic. There will be profound changes in the way people study, the things they choose to study, and in the very way they view study. 
Top colleges are unlikely to alter much. Attending such places is seen as conferring a high chance of future success. Students will not be deterred from applying. Beneath this rarefied strata however, widespread changes in the market are bound to occur. The most far-reaching change will be wrought not on the size of the sector but on the nature and form of the provision it offers. 
At the outset, prospective students will approach education with a new set of questions. They will need to be more fully assured of the value of what they’re purchasing. ‘Is this course going to give me the tools to enable me to pay for it?’ ‘Will it give me the rewards that make the sacrifice of study worthwhile?’ ‘Will the rewards be worth it, or will debt be too high a price to pay?’ There will be an uptick in applications for business and vocational courses, as students prioritise real-world skills. 
With rising living costs exerting a squeeze, and a depressed jobs market creating uncertainty, users are sure to examine the possibility of trying to combine work with study. Many will decide to enter a career first and defer study or perhaps study part-time. HND courses for instance, which are able to be upgraded into a degree with further study, may be seen as the smart option.
Many such courses can also be taken online and this type of study, which has the added advantage of being significantly cheaper, will increasingly appeal to a new ‘cherry-picking’ student . Rather than ‘front-loading’ all their education when they’re arguably less appreciative of its benefits, people will come to view education as a continuing process, with online courses likely to supersede in many areas. 
The student of the future will be cost-savvy, putting flexibility and usefulness over tradition. How universities respond to these changing attitudes will dictate whether they maintain their strength or are usurped by new, fast-moving competitors. Inevitably, distance learning courses will increase in popularity