The answer to this question can vary greatly depending on your political stance,and your place in society.
- If you are a student, then most would probably believe that it should be open to everybody who is good enough. Of course, there should be some standards, simply to make sure that you are good enough at your subject to be able to understand it properly at this high level of education.
- But with rising fees and fighting for places at some universities, it is getting more and more difficult for people of any background to be able to get in at all.
- The effect of this is that the elite are the ones that get through, even if the government and the universities insist that this is not the case. They will pick and choose the best students, and to a certain extent that is how it should be, but at the same time if this is taken to an extreme, like now, it means that even some of the best students are not getting in because there simply are not enough places at the best universities to accommodate everyone.
- A large proportion of young people should have the right to go to university if they are good enough. It means that they are likely to be earning a higher salary when they leave education, and thus can lead a better life, which is the wish of most people. University used to be free, and it is strange that now it is extremely expensive, thousands and thousands more people want to go to better themselves. People are no longer satisfied with office or factory jobs, and this is why we are seeing a lot more mature students coming back in to education to get a better job. If university is essential to have a good life, then it should be available to as many people as possible.
