Crackdown could allow Facebook and Google to open universities

UNIVERSITIES will have to publish the amount of class and lecture time students receive in a Government crackdown on sub-standard courses.

They will also be forced to list the jobs graduates get and how much they earn under proposals in a White Paper announced today.

Plans to open up higher education to competition by allowing new "challenger institutions" to award degrees if they meet national standards are also being announced.

The proposals could allow employers like Facebook or Google to open universities
The proposals, aimed at tackling skills shortfalls in some sectors, could allow employers like Facebook or Google to open universities, say ministers.

High-scoring institutions will be able to raise the £9,000 annual fees in line with inflation — sparking warnings that this could lead to students facing more debt.

An Office For Students will also be created, while universities will have to publish information on students' ethnic, gender and socio-economic backgrounds and how they progress.