Survey of teenagers reveals:
- Many don't realise the financial implications of tuition fees
- There is a national gender divide on computer skills
- 19 per cent of maths students say they are poor at numbers
Teenagers' doubts about their literacy, numeracy and computer skills and their confusion about the costs of university life are revealed in The Times Higher-Hobsons UK School Leaver Recruitment Review , writes Paul Hill.
Ten thousand 16 to 18-year-olds in England and Wales were asked for their thoughts on higher education, tuition fees and student debt - and on their own academic abilities, interests and ambitions.
Overall, seven out of ten said they expected to go to university while a little over 2 per cent said they planned to look for a place on either an apprenticeship scheme or a training programme with a company after leaving school.
Seventy per cent of white teenagers - who formed the majority of those questioned - 84 per cent of black teenagers and 91 per cent of Asian teenagers said they planned to go to university.
Asked if they had skills with maths and numbers, 58 per cent of the teenagers said no.
Half the teenagers who study science said they lacked number skills, and the figure rose to 70 per cent among those studying English. Reassuringly, 81 per cent of those studying maths said they had number skills, although the 19 per cent who said they lacked such skills might worry maths lecturers.
English students were more confident of their writing abilities, with 56 per cent saying they were skilled in writing essays. Only 37 per cent of science students and 31 per cent of teenagers studying maths said they had writing skills.
Looking more closely, teenagers in the North East had the least confidence in their numbers skills but were among the most confident in their handling of the written word.
When teenagers were asked if they were skilled in working with computers, a gender divide emerged. Just over two thirds (67 per cent) of boys, compared with 46 per cent of girls, said they had computer skills.
Of teenagers in further education, state and private schools, the latter were the most likely to say they lacked computer skills (58 per cent).
Given a range of words and asked which best described them, 56 per cent said "ambitious" and the same proportion said "fun-loving". Intriguingly, nine out of ten described themselves as "unconventional".
Only one in three boys said he was "conscientious" - compared with 44 per cent of girls.
Teenagers studying maths were more likely to describe themselves as "clever" (55 per cent) than their counterparts in other disciplines.
Just under two thirds overall said they were "kind".
A more detailed survey of 1,000 teenagers found that despite extensive news coverage of tuition and top-up fees, a fifth believed higher education was free.
When asked to give an idea of how much they thought annual tuition fees would be, 36 per cent said between £1,001 and £2,000, per cent said £2,001 to £3,000 while 18 per cent said the would be £3,001 to £4,000.
Stark differences emerged between what teenagers expected living costs to be, depending on whether they lived at home as an undergraduate or lived in halls.
Roughly 30 per cent of students who said they planned to live at home said the additional cost of being an undergraduate would be less than £1,000 a year.
When teenagers who expected to move out of the family home as undergraduates were asked the same question, one in five said £3,001 to £4,000 and a further 19 per cent said £4,001 to £5,000.
Asked how much they knew of the 2006 tuition fee and bursary changes, 43 per cent said they were "very aware", while 41 per cent said they were "vaguely aware".
The teenagers were then asked: "Now you know how much it could cost you to be taught at university, which of the following are you likely to do?"
Fifty-four per cent said they would "research the cost of going to university more", 35 per cent would "study a course with really good employment prospects" and 34 per cent replied: "I would not change my decisions about university at all".
For full report contact:
Louise Wringe
Commercial Mananger, Hobsons
Education Research
0207 958 5075
louise.wringe@hobsons.co.uk