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Recently, the vice-chancellor of a large London-based university attempted [on BBC Radio 4¡¯s Today programme] to justify an undergraduate tuition fee of ?9,250 by arguing that the university needed all this money even for low-cost courses.

The private for-profit college of which I have the honour to be principal charges a fee of ?6,000. A recent government study confirmed that our student retention rate significantly exceeds our benchmark. Our student satisfaction rate hovers at 97 per cent. Our fee of ?6,000 not only enables us to achieve these results, but also provides a shareholder return; additionally we are obliged to pay taxes from which most universities are exempt.

Geoffrey Alderman
Principal, Nelson College London

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