Dear Parent,

You may be aware that on 10th April, the States voted unanimously to approve a new Higher
Education funding mechanism that will bring a degree-level education within reach of many
more Jersey students. The new mechanism, which comes into effect for courses beginning
this September onwards, will mean that any student from a household with an income of less
than £110,000 will be able to study for a degree at no cost to themselves. Students will also
be able to apply for a maintenance grant of up to £7,500 to support them whilst they are
studying. This will, for many Jersey families, make higher education free.

It may be that your son or daughter had not considered extending their studies to degree
level. It is worth knowing that:

• A degree is the condition of entry to many careers, from nursing and social work to
  finance, and marketing
• A degree increases a person’s freedom to transfer from one career to another as the
  job market changes
• A degree leads to an increase in income over your working life – known as “the
  graduate premium”

The labour market in Jersey is increasingly competitive and employers are looking to recruit
people with graduate-level skills. With this in mind, University College Jersey (UCJ) at
Highlands offers a range of degrees designed to help learners achieve their career
ambitions. Did you know that:

• The entry criteria for degrees at UCJ is 2/3 merit grades or equivalent, at level 3
• Students at UCJ achieve higher grades than their counterparts at UK universities
• Over 95% of UCJ students are in graduate level jobs within months of graduating
• Class sizes are small and students enjoy the highest standards of pastoral care
• We offer a range of degrees to fit with every major sector of the island’s economy

Given the change in funding for Higher Education, the question for young people now is not
“Should I study for a degree at University College Jersey?”, but rather, “Why wouldn’t I?”.
There literally is nothing to lose.

If you are interested in finding out more about the degrees on offer, meeting with the course
teams, and perhaps chatting to some of our current degree students please come along to
our open evening on Thursday 17th May from 6-7pm, at University College Jersey, University
Centre building, Highlands College.

You can also find our on-line Prospectus here:

https://www.highlands.ac.uk/college-brochures/

We look forward to meeting you.

Ben Bennett
Head of Higher Education