Young women are losing faith in the university system with nearly half believing it is not worth getting a degree.

  Tuition fees and little chance of landing a good job make higher education an unattractive prospect for them, a study suggests.

  It found that nearly half of female graduates would not go to university if they had the chance again.

  The research will cause concern because it was carried out before the Government announced that fees will almost treble to ?9,000 in 2012.

  The findings have prompted warnings that a generation of ambitious young women will miss out on a high-flying career and the opportunity to continue their education.

  Louise Court, editor of Cosmopolitan magazine, which conducted the survey, said young women seem to think university ‘a waste of time’.

  ‘It’s never been harder to be a young woman with ambition,’ she said. ‘Understandably, women are angry and frustrated about their future and this is having a damaging affect on their self-esteem.

  The survey of 1,353 women also looked at the career prospects and financial outlook for women in 2011.

  Two thirds of those questioned said they thought it would be ‘almost impossible’ to get their dream job and a quarter were unable to follow their preferred career.

  Only 14 per cent said they felt safe from the sack.

  And the financial situation for graduates was especially bad, with half saying they had so much student debt they could not save.

  The same proportion believed they faced worse financial hardship than their parents.

  One in seven women said they had been forced to postpone getting married because a wedding would be too expensive.

  And more than one in six admitted that financial constraints had made them postpone trying to start a family.

  Vicky Tuck, a campaigner for women’s education and former head of Cheltenham Ladies College, said: ‘The rise in fees is going to make a lot of people reflect on why they are going to university.

  ‘Before the introduction of fees it was not an automatic assumption that a degree would lead to a good job. It is only recently that we have seen that relationship.

  ‘I believe that women should only go to university if they have a genuine interest in learning, a precious opportunity. If they go purely to get a job, many will be disappointed.’


  年轻女性正在对大学失去信心，近半数的女性认为攻读学位不划算。

  一项调查显示，由于大学学费高企，找到好工作的可能性又很小，高等教育对女性的吸引力越来越小。

  该调查发现，如果再给这些大学毕业的女性一次选择的机会，近半数人不会去读大学。

  这项调查是在英国政府出台新学费计划前进行的，调查结果让人忧心。新计划说大学学费2012年将涨到9000英镑，几乎是现在的三倍。

  该调查警告说将有一代胸怀大志的年轻女性会因此失去继续受教育的机会和一份有前途的职业。

  这项调查是由《时尚》杂志开展的，该杂志主编路易丝·康特说年轻女性似乎认为读大学是 “浪费时间”。

  她说：“做一个有抱负的年轻女性从来没有像现在这么难。可以理解，女性对她们的未来感到愤怒和绝望，这对她们的自尊心是一种伤害。”

  该调查采访了1353位女性，调查了她们在2011年的职业前景和经济状况。

  三分之二的被调查者认为找到理想工作“几乎是不可能的”，四分之一的人无法从事自己喜欢的职业。

  只有14%的被调查者说她们觉得自己不会被解雇。

  而毕业生的经济状况尤其糟糕，半数毕业生说她们的学生贷款太多，根本攒不下钱。

  有一半人认为她们面临的经济困境要比她们的父辈更加严重。

  七分之一的女性说婚礼的巨额支出迫使她们延迟结婚计划。

  超过六分之一的人承认因为经济窘迫而推迟生育计划。

  妇女教育运动领导者、切尔滕纳姆女子学院的前校长薇琪·塔克说：“学费上涨将使很多人都开始思考上大学是为了什么。

  “虽然在学费上涨计划之前，人们也不会自然而然地认为学历能带来理想工作。但是到了最近人们才开始看重这两者之间的联系。

  “我认为女性应该是出于对学习的真正兴趣、想得到一个宝贵的学习机会而去上大学。如果她们仅仅是为了找工作而去上大学，那很多人都会觉得失望的。”