Rosvanian wrote: ↑Mon Feb 27, 2023 1:01 pm
In the case of Chope, clearly it's both.
My youngest daughter is six months into her first nursing job in the NHS, having graduated from York University with around £40K of debt (the bursary was partly reintroduced in time for her final year). She will still have that debt regardless of whether she stays in the profession. That Chope doesn't appear to know this is laughable.
There's no question that she was used as an additional free labour resource by York and Harrogate hospitals during years 2 and 3 of her course. Furthermore, having been in the thick of it during the pandemic, the lack academic and pastoral support from the university was an utter disgrace - and all for £9K a year. I was a huge supporter of higher education from my own experience as a student 40 years ago and from working in a Russell Group university for a number of years but her experience has completely changed my view.
That's an insane level of debt for something including, as you say, lots of free work for the NHS.
Sam Freedman thinks that the government needs to reduce debts for people who do teacher training in view of the shortages (recruitment is again disappointing), but that the Treasury won't allow it (or as I call them, Conservative Chancellors of the Exchequer).
The same with bells on for nursing, I'd have thought.