Students from the University of Cambridge have expressed concerns for the University’s future, after £4.2bn in cuts were announced last week in the government’s Comprehensive Spending Review.

Currently, the government grants a total of £11.5bn to universities for student tuition, research and infrastructure. This amount is expected to be cut by 36% next year.

To offset these losses, and owing to the Browne Report’s recent proposal to lift the tuition fee cap, Cambridge could charge fees of £14,000 a year for some science-based subjects.

Earlier this month, Lord Browne advised to lift the £3,290 tuition fee cap in order to create a freer market in higher education.

With considerably more contact time than other universities, a passion for pioneering research and its prestige to maintain, Cambridge could be forced to charge a minimum of £6,000 to meet costs.

In the face of these daunting figures, students have shown concerns that the University will struggle to continue its access work with underprilviged students.

According to Andy McGowan, Access Officer for Cambridge University Students Union (CUSU), "If Cambridge were to start charging double what other institutions charge for tuition fees, then despite all of the hard work put in to widening participation, the amazing bursaries the University offers and the great facilities available, there is a huge risk that students from the poorest backgrounds would choose to go elsewhere, purely because of financial reasons."

He added, "I spend a lot of my time telling prospective students that despite what some people initially think about the costs involved, studying at Cambridge is actually cheaper than a lot of places and can be financially advantageous. If Browne’s proposals come to fruition, this will simply no longer be true."

In addition to this, if Cambridge is forced to raise its fees, it may lose valuable post-graduate students, researchers and tutors.

On the issue of post-graduate funding, National Union of Students (NUS) President, Aaron Porter, said: "I am appalled that Browne has failed to take account of the obvious: that a lack of post-graduate financial support is a barrier to access for students who cannot afford to pay upfront fees. Our research shows that finance is a core consideration in decisions about whether to undertake post-graduate study.

"It is completely unreasonable to require already hard-pressed students and their families to take on the burden of post-graduate study on top of inflated undergraduate student debts."

He added, "This is a spending review that looks an entire generation in the eye and says ‘you’re on your own’."

As part of the Comprehensive Spending Review’s plans, the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) will see a 79% reduction in its teachers’ funding, from £3.2bn to £700m. The remaining budget will focus on ‘priority’ subjects such as medicine and engineering.

Rahul Mansigani, President of CUSU, expressed concerns that this would lead to a bias towards science-based subjects.

According to Mansigani, "£4.2bn in cuts is a disaster for Britain’s universities and our students. With funding for arts and social sciences cut to almost zero, even Cambridge will suffer and we need to make sure that our student experience – in terms of supervisions and world-class teaching – is protected."

These concerns have been echoed by many Cambridge students. One student said: "It’s so much money to drain from the education system. Presumably the University will start tightening its purse strings now, even though [the review’s proposals] are going to take a couple of years to be implemented."

The same sentiments were on display last Saturday, when over 500 Cambridge students and residents marched in protest against the public spending cuts intended to save Britain £83bn into the next year.

The protests are set to continue. On 5th November, CUSU will hold a rally in the city centre against the Browne Review’s proposal to lift the tuition fee cap.

However, some have expressed concerns about the efficacy of these protests. One student commented: "Sadly, I don’t think many people will go, just because they don’t think that this is happening.

She added: "We don’t see the results of massive decisions like this until it’s too late."

In addition to the Cambridge rally, a national demonstration against education funding cuts, organized by the NUS and the Univerity and College Union (UCU), will be held in London on Wednesday 10th November.

Mansigani emphasised the significance of the event, saying that "the demonstration on 10th November could not come at a more important time. The future of university education in the UK is being threatened, and students must defend it."