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Posted June 24, 2011

The rise of private institutes as postgraduate program providers

With the introduction of undergraduate tuition fees in 2012, it is anticipated that there will be a growth in private institutes offering undergraduate and postgraduate education.

Unlike traditional universities, private institutes receive no direct funding from the government. Some of them, such as Regents College and the College of Law, are registered charities and are therefore not profit motivated, others such as BPP, are commercial, for-profit entities

The UK’s present government wants to expand the number of private sector institutes in higher education. Speaking about awarding BPP University College status last year, Universities Minister David Willetts, said, “The Coalition Government is committed to promoting a wider range of educational opportunities, delivering a more diverse higher education system and matching the skills employers want. So I am delighted that, less than four months after coming to office, we are creating the first new private University College in over 30 years.”

He continued, “It is healthy to have a vibrant private sector working alongside our more traditional universities. International experience shows a diverse range of higher education providers helps widen access, focuses attention on teaching quality and promotes innovative learning methods, such as web-based distance learning. We want to see a higher education sector that is dynamic and flexible and focussed on the needs of students and employers. ”

Chief Executive Officer of BPP, Carl Lygo commented, “Ensuring the UK has a high quality private sector for Higher Education is crucial to help provide greater opportunity and choice for students.  We are delighted to be at the forefront of these developments with our 34-year history of serving the accountancy and legal professions. Becoming a University College is another major step in our journey, and we have some exciting growth plans for the next 5 years, which include expanding into other sectors, increasing our range of programmes and providing highly flexible methods of study. The education landscape is changing, and over the next decade we will see a different picture emerging, where both students and employers will drive demand for their preferred method of study and training.  We see ourselves as a pioneer in this field, and hope that our unique status and self funding model will lead the way in which other providers will be able to operate in.”

If the UK continues to follow the international trend for private institutes then we should be seeing much more of them in the future.

A spokeswoman from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills said, "The future regulatory regime for all providers of higher education is a key issue in the forthcoming White Paper, which will lead to a Higher Education Bill in 2012. The government wants to encourage a diverse and dynamic higher education sector with a range of providers offering high quality and innovative teaching, wider choice and good value for students."

The Director of the Higher Education Policy Institute which is the UK’s only independent think tank dedicated to higher education,  Bahram Bekhradnia, says, "Private universities are here to stay - and there are going to be more of them."

David Willetts will soon be publishing a White Paper that will explain how more private colleges could be allowed to enter the higher education market.

Find out more about private providers of postgraduate programs .
 

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