More students should study shorter courses – former Open University boss

More people need to be studying shorter courses rather than full-time honours degrees, a higher education expert has argued.

Professor Tim Blackman, professor of sociology and social policy at the Open University and its former vice-chancellor, has said full-time honours degrees were created when universities were small, elite institutions.

In his paper published by the Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi), he has recommended the higher education system shift to more shorter courses and lifelong learning, which would spread costs over time, and reduce full-time honours degree provisions.

This system would suit learners better at different life stages, and make online learning or commuting for courses more feasible than they are for full-time honours degrees.

Shorter courses could be supported by a combination of individual, employer and state funding, Professor Blackman, who was vice-chancellor of the Open University from 2019 to 2024, said.

He argues universities are uniquely placed to prevent potential breakdowns in our economy, climate and democracy by providing the skills and knowledge to help transition to a sustainable economy.

Higher education can also help tackle increasing misinformation, he said.

“A lot of higher education is about passing on knowledge, on the basis that this is information and not misinformation, and in particular passing on the critical skills to tell the difference. We should not restrict this ability to less than half the population,” Professor Blackman said.

He argues the Government must go further in its reforms to the higher education sector.

Professor Blackman welcomed the Government’s new target for two thirds of young people to go on to university, further education or an apprenticeship by age 25.

However, he said higher education “needs to be universal, like secondary education. There is no biological basis for believing that less than about 90% of the population would not succeed in higher education.”

Director of Hepi Nick Hillman said Professor Blackman’s argument “addresses the key issues of our times, including disinformation, climate change and the pressures on public spending”.

“Not everyone in higher education will agree with what he has written but everyone should engage with what he has to say,” he added.

The Post-16 Education and Skills white paper set out the Government’s plans for higher education, which include increasing tuition fee caps for undergraduate students in line with inflation for the next two academic years.

The Government will also legislate when parliamentary time allows to increase tuition fees automatically in future, linked to quality.

It expects to see more collaboration and formal collaboration in the sector, the Government said in the white paper published last week.

And it will also consult on the inclusion of break points in degrees “to create a more flexible learning offer”, and a new taskforce will tackle regional university “cold spots”.

From September 2026, learners will be apply for loans through the Lifelong Learning Entitlement, which brings funding for degrees, technical qualifications and online courses together.

A Department for Education spokesperson said: “Through our Plan for Change, our ambitious reforms announced in the Post-16 Education and Skills White Paper will restore universities as engines of growth, aspiration and opportunity.

“The Lifelong Learning Entitlement will transform the student finance system in England and we’re consulting on creating break points in degree programmes, which will broaden access to high-quality, flexible education and training.

“Our reforms also focus on making sure students get value for money and the Office for Students can impose sanctions where providers failing to meet expected standards.”