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Postgraduate fees

Why do postgraduate fees for some courses vary so much?

Take Creative Writing, for instance. Why does Birkbeck charge £6690 for its full time MA, whilst UEA charges only £3390 for its full time MA?

Yet, Birkbeck charges only £3390 for its full time MA in Modern and Contemporary Literature.

I'm curious to know why this is. Do some universities see postgraduates as cash cows, willing to pay whatever they will charge or are there genuine reasons for these variations in fees?
Reply 1
Avatar for k0932741
k0932741
1
It's the same for psychology, which is bizarre considering they have guidelines they have to follow by the BPS in order for the course to be recognised as a qualification. In that respect there appears to be no difference as they all follow the same sort of thing, however the price difference can be huge. I reckon some uni's just try to milk you for all it's worth!x
Reply 2
Avatar for bestie
bestie
15
I think some do milk it, especially on taught courses but I guess it also depends on what the department provides, the contact time, the type of course and the general uni facilities. For example, if one department spends £100 per student on books for the library and one only £50, the one that spends more is probably going to have higher fees. Location also plays a part (London more expensive), as does the uni/department's reputation as they can get away with it.

Shop around though, for my course, a similar one with less lab time actully works out more expensive (double) than a course with great facilities with more lab time. Mainly, I think, because it's a less prestigous uni away from major cities.
Supply/demand is the short answer.

A longer one is that some universities (e.g. LSE) are "ahead of the curve" with the commodification of Masters degrees and others (e.g. Cambridge) are behind.
Reply 4
Avatar for Mitothy
Mitothy
Its also true that the departments with the better reputations and more prestige have more qualified/respected staff who command a higher salary. So you're partly paying more to be able to spend time with supposedly smarter people/better teachers.

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