Should businesses offer degrees?

Aug 15, 2012

A major publisher plans to set up a college to teach a degree course in business and enterprise.

Pearson owns exam board EdExcel and publishes various educational books, as well as owning the publisher Penguin and the Financial Times newspaper. But now it plans to get more hands-on with education, by opening Pearson College.

The college will offer places to around 40 students, who will be taught in the publisher's offices. The fees will be £6,500 a year. Because Pearson can't offer degrees on its own, the degree will be validated by colleges of the University of London.

Supporters say that schemes like this will offer new ways to get degrees and give students more choice. Others are worried that universities and colleges that are run for profit might be more interested in making money than looking after the interests of students.