Abstract
This chapter begins with a discussion of neoliberalism to highlight how this concept has increasingly underpinned and influenced the social context throughout the United Kingdom and globally since the end of World War II (Jones 2015). I then discuss two key policy changes, arising, in part, from neoliberal discourses and ideology: first, the impact of cuts to the EMA; second, the impact of the increase in university top-up fees for tuition. I will be comparing the university fees top-up policy in England to the higher education fee situation in Greece and Spain to explore the parallels of these countries with the English context. Then finally, the chapter considers the current youth un/employment context facing young people in England and compares and contrasts this with youth un/employment in Greece and Spain (Nölke 2016; McCann 2010).
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
In England, older, (pre-1992) universities are more prestigious and selective than newer (post-1992) universities, which were formally called Polytechnics or Colleges of Higher Education, and were granted university status by the Conservative Government in 1992.
Bibliography
Adams, R. J. (2001) Public Employment Relations: Canadian Developments in Perspective, in G. Swimmer. (ed) Public-Sector Labour Relations in an Era of Restraint and Restructuring. New York: Oxford University.
Aguilera-Barchet, B. (2012) A Higher Education for the Twenty-first Century: European and US Approaches. Brussels: Centre for European Studies.
Ainley, P., & Allen, M. (2010) Lost Generation? New strategies for youth and education. London: Continuum.
Anxo, D., Bosch, G., & Rubery, J. (eds) (2010) The Welfare State and Life Transitions: A European Perspective. Gloucestershire: Edward Elgar Publishing Limited.
Archer, L., Mendick, H., & Hollingworth, S. (2010) Urban Youth and Schooling. Maidenhead: Open University Press.
Archer, L., & Hutchings, M. (2000) ‘“Bettering Yourself’? Discourses of Risk, Cost and Benefit in Ethnically Diverse, Young Working-Class Non-Participants’ Constructions of Higher Education’’ in British Journal of Sociology of Education, Vol. 21 (4): 555–574.
Ashworth, A., Hardman, J., Woon-Chia, L., Maguire, S., Middleton, S., Dearden, L., Emmerson, C., Frayne, C., Goodman, A., Ichimura, H., & Meghir, C. (2001) Education Maintenance Allowance: The First Year. A Quantitative Evaluation. London: DfE RR257.
Ball, S. J. (2012) The Micro-Politics of the School: Towards a Theory of School Organization. Oxon: Routledge.
Banyuls, J., & Recio, A. (2012) Spain: The nightmare of Mediterranean neoliberalism, in S. Lehndorff. (ed.) A Triumph of Failed Ideas: European Models of Capitalism in Crisis. Brussels: ETUI, 199–218.
Bauman, Z. (2005) Liquid Life. Cambridge: Policy Press.
BBC (2011) ‘Q&A: EMA grants’. BBC 28 March. Online: (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-12209072, (accessed 5 August 2015).
Blanchflower, D. G., & Freeman, R. B. (eds) (2000) Youth Employment and Joblessness in Advanced Countries. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Blunkett, D. (2008) The Inclusive Society: Social mobility in 21st century Britain. London: Progress.
Boffey, D. (2015) Youth unemployment rate is worst for 20 years, compared with overall figure. The Guardian 21 February. Online https://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/feb/22/youth-unemployment-jobless-figure, (accessed 31 August 2016).
Bourdieu, P. (ed) (1999) Job insecurity is everywhere now, in Acts of Resistance: Against the Tyranny of the Market. New York: New Press.
Bowl, M., & Hughes, T. (2014) ‘Fair access and fee setting in English universities: what do institutional statements suggest about university strategies in a stratified quasi-market?’ in in Studies in Higher Education, Vol. 41 (2): 269–287.
Bowles, S., & Gintis, H. (1976) Schooling in Capitalist America: Education Reform and the Contradictions of Economic Life. New York: Basic Books Inc.
Bradley, H., & Ingram, N. (2013) Banking on the Future: choices, aspirations and economic hardship in working-class student experience, in W. Atkinson, S. Roberts, & M. Savage. (eds) Class Inequality in Austerity Britain. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Bratti, M., McKnight, A., Naylor, R., & Smith, J. (2004) ‘Higher Education Out-comes, Graduate Employment and University Performance Indicators’ in in Journal of the Royal Statistical Society, Vol. 167 (3): 475–496.
Brown, P., Lauder, H., & Ashton, D. (2011) The Global Auction: The Broken Promises of Education, Jobs, and Incomes. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Burke, P. J. (2012) The Right to Higher Education: Beyond widening participation. London: Routledge.
Burke, P. J. (2013) ‘Formations of Masculinity and Higher Education Pedagogies’ in Culture, Society and Masculinities, Vol. 5 (2): 109–126.
Butler, J. (2004) Precarious Life: The Powers of Mourning and Violence. London and New York: Verso.
Butler, J. (2008) Judith Butler in conversation: analyzing the texts and talk of everyday life. London: Routledge.
Butler, J. (2009) Frames of war: when is life grievable?. London, New York: Verso.
Callender, C. (2003) Student financial support in higher education: access and exclusion, in M. Tight. (ed.) Access and Exclusion (International Perspectives on Higher Education Research. Bradford: Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 127–158.
Callender, C., & Jackson, J. (2008) ‘Does the fear of debt constrain choice of university and subject of study?’ in Studies in Higher Education, Vol. 33 (4): 405–429.
Chevalier, A., & Conlon, G. (2003) Does it pay to attend a prestigious university?. London: Centre for the Economics of Education.
Chowdry, H., Dearden, L., & Emerson, K. (2008) Education Maintenance Allowance evaluation with administrative data. London: Learning and Skills Council National Office.
Chowdry, H., & Emerson, K. (2010) An efficient maintenance allowance?. London: Institute for Fiscal Studies.
Cohen, P. (2006) ‘Re-doing the Knowledge: Labour, Learning and Life Knowledge in Transit’ in Journal of Education and Work, Vol. 19 (2): 109–120.
Croxford, L., Iannelli, C., Shapira, M., Howieson, C., & Raffe, D. (2006) Education and Youth Transitions across Britain 1984-2002, CES Briefing No. 39. Edinburgh: Centre for Educational Sociology, University of Edinburgh.
Davies, P., Slack, K., Hughes, A., Mangan, J., & Vigurs, K. (2008) Knowing Where to Study? Fees, Bursaries and Fair Access. Staffordshire: Staffordshire University Press.
Davis, D., Bryant, J. L., & Zaharieva, J. (2012) Leadership Relationships Between Centre Directors and University Administrators in Cooperative Research Centres: A Multilevel Analysis, in C. Boardman, D. O. Gray, & R. Drew. (eds) Cooperative Research Centers and Technical Innovation: Government Policies. London/New York: Springer.
Dearing, R. (1997) Higher education in the learning society, Report of the National Committee of Enquiry into Higher Education. London: HMSO.
Deem, R., Hillyard, S., & Reed, M. (2007) Knowledge, higher education, and the new managerialism: The changing management of UK universities. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Dunnett, A., Moorhouse, J., Walsh, C., & Barry, C. (2012) ‘Choosing a University: A Conjoint Analysis of the Impact of Higher Fees on Students Applying for University in 2012’ in Tertiary Education and Management, Vol. 18 (3): 199–220.
Gouvias, D. (2012) ‘Accountability in the Greek Higher Education System as a High-Stakes Policymaking Instrument’ in Higher Education Policy, Vol. 25 (1): 65–86.
Harvey, D. (2005) A Brief History of Neoliberalism. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Hermann, C. (2013) ‘Crisis, Structural Reform and the Dismantling of the European Social Model(s)’. IPE Working Paper 26/2013. Berlin: Institute for International Political Economy.
Hermann, C. (2015) ‘Crisis and social policy in Europe’ in Global Social Policy, Vol. 15 (1): 82–85.
Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) (2012) ‘What do graduates do? Career planning for higher education and beyond. HESA. Online: http://www.hecsu.ac.uk/assets/assets/documents/WDGD_Oct_2012.pdf (accessed 1 January 2013).
HM Government. (2009) New Opportunitites: Fair chances for the future. CM 7533. Norwich: The Stationery Office.
Hoskins, K., & Barker, B. (2014) Education and Social Mobility: Dreams of Success. London/Staffordshire: IOE and Trentham Books.
Hussein, I., McNally, S., & Telhaj, S. (2009) ‘University Quality and Graduate Wages in the UK’. Centre for the Economics of Education CEE DP 99. Online: http://cee.lse.ac.uk/ceedps/ceedp99.pdf (accessed 5 January, 2013).
Jones, K. (2015) Education in Britain: 1944 to the Present (2nd). Cambridge: Polity Press.
Karamessini, M. (2010) ‘Labour market impact of four recessions on women and men in Greece: Comparative analysis in a long term perspective’ in Social Cohesion and Development, Vol. 7 (2): 3–104.
Lauder, H., Brown, P., & Halsey, A. H. (2010) The sociology of education as ‘redemption’: A critical history, in J. Furlong & M. Lawn. (eds) Disciplines of Education. London: Routledge, 13–30.
Leschke, J., Watt, A., & Finn, M. (2012) Job quality in the crisis – an update of the Job Quality Index (JQI)’, in European Trade Union Institute. Working Paper 2012.07
Levy, C., & Hopkins, L. (2010) ‘Shaping Up for Innovation: Are we delivering the right skills for the 2020 knowledge economy?’. The Work Foundation - A Knowledge Economy programme report. Online: http://www.theworkfoundation.com/assets/docs/publications/262_Shaping_up_for_Innovation.pdf (accessed 22 October 2014).
Lillis, T. M. (2001) Student writing: access, regulation, desire. London: Routledge.
Marseilles, M. (2010) ‘Greece: an expensive free education’. University World News 24 January. Online: (http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=2010012409184186, (accessed 16 November).
McCann, D. (2010) The Political Economy of the European Union: An Institutionalist Perspective. Cambridge: Polity.
McCrone, T., Gardiner, C., Southcott, C., & Featherstone, G. (2010) ‘Information, Advice and Guidance for Young People (LG Group Research Report)’, NFER. Online: http://www.nfer.ac.uk/publications/LIAG01 (accessed, 16 June 2014).
Medway, P., Rhodes, V., Macrae, S., Maguire, M., & Gewirtz, S. (2003) Widening Participation through Supporting Undergraduates: what is being done and what can be done to support student progression at King’s?. London: King’s College Department of Education and Professional Studies.
Nölke, A. (2016) ‘Economic causes of the Eurozone crisis: the analytical contribution of Comparative Capitalism’ in Socio-Economic Review, Vol. 14 (1): 141–161.
O’Leary, N., & Sloane, P. (2005) ‘The Return to a University Education in Great Britain’ in National Institute Economic Review, Vol. 193: 75–89.
O’Neill, M. (2016) Youth Unemployment Statistics. House of Commons Briefing Paper 5871.
Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (OFSTED) (2015) ‘Apprenticeships: developing skills for future prosperity’. OFSTED Online: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/apprenticeships-developing-skills-for-future-prosperity (accessed 6 January 2017).
Ong, A.. (2006) Neoliberalism as Exception: Mutations in Citizenship and Sovereignty. North Carolina: Duke University Press.
Ong, A. (2007) ‘Neoliberalism as a mobile technology’ in Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, Vol. 32 (1): 3–8.
Peever, C. (2013) ‘Students demand reinstatement of EMA’. The Independent 28 February. Online: http://www.independent.co.uk/student/news/students-demand-reinstatement-of-ema-8514373.html (accessed March 2015).
Power, S., & Gewirtz, S. (2001) ‘Reading Education Action Zones’ in Journal of Education Policy, Vol. 16 (1): 39–51.
Power, S., & Whitty, G. (2006) Education and the Middle Class: A Complex But Crucial Case for the Sociology of Education, in H. Lauder, P. Brown, J. Dillabough, & A. Halsey. (eds) Education, Globalization and Social Change. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 446–453.
Radice, H. (2013) ‘How we got here: UK higher education under neoliberalism’ in ACME: An International E-Journal for Critical Geographies, Vol. 12 (3): 407–441.
Reay, D. (2001) ‘Finding or losing yourself?: working-class relationships to education’ in Journal of Education Policy, Vol. 16 (4): 1–14.
Reay, D., David, M., & Ball, S. J. (2005) Degrees of Choice: social class, race and gender in higher education. Staffordshire: Trentham Books Limited.
Reay, D., Crozier, G., & Clayton, J. (2010) ‘“Fitting in” or “standing out’: working-class students in UK higher education’ in British Educational Research Journal, Vol. 32 (1): 1–19.
Rhodes, R. A. W. (1994) ‘The Hollowing out of the State: The Changing Nature of the State in Britain’ in Political Quarterly, Vol. 65 (2): 138–151.
Roberts, J. (2009) ‘The global knowledge economy in question’ in Critical perspectives on international business, Vol. 5 (4): 285–303.
Sinfield, S., Burns, T., & Holley, D. (2003) ‘Outsiders Looking in or Insiders Looking out? Widening Participation in a Post 1992 University’. Paper presented at Discourse, Power & Resistance. Plymouth University, UK.
Social Exclusion Unit. (1999) Bridging the Gap: New Opportunities for 16-18 Year Olds. London: The Stationery Office.
Telegraph, T. (2012) ‘Alan Milburn: scrapping EMA was a ‘very bad mistake’, The Telegraph 18 October. Online: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/9616615/Alan-Milburn-scrapping-EMA-was-a-very-bad-mistake.html(accessed 5 August 2015).
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) (2011) Strong Performers and Successful Reformers in Education: Education Policy Advice for Greece.
Walker, I., & Zhu, Y. (2011) ‘Differences by degree: Evidence of the net financial rates of return to undergraduate study for England and Wales’ in Economics of Education Review, Vol. 30 (6): 1177–1186.
Watson, J. (2012) ‘Butler’s Biopolitics: Precarious Community’ in Theory and Event, Vol. 15: 2.
Wilkins, S., Shams, F., & Huisman, J. (2013) ‘The decision-making and changing behavioural dynamics of potential higher education students: the impacts of increasing tuition fees in England’ in Education Studies, Vol. 39 (2): 125–141.
Woodrow, M., Foong Lee, M., McGrane, J., Osborne, B., Pudner, H., & Trotman, C. (1998) From elitism to inclusion: Good practice in widening access to higher education (main report). London: CVCP.
Zmas, A. (2014) ‘Financial crisis and higher education policies in Greece: between intra- and supranational pressures’ in Higher Education, Vol. 69 (3): 495–508.
Ball, S. J. (2016) Labouring to Relate: Neoliberalism, Embodied Policy and Network Dynamics. Peabody, MA: PEA Yearbook.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2017 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Hoskins, K. (2017). The Changing Context of Further and Higher Education and Youth Employment. In: Youth Identities, Education and Employment. Policy and Practice in the Classroom. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-35292-7_2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-35292-7_2
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-137-35291-0
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-35292-7
eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)