An Open Letter To Rishi Sunak In Reference To His Manifesto To Crack Down On Degrees That Don’t Make Students Lots Of Money

Dear Mr. Sunak. R (Former Chancellor of the Exchequer),

To begin with, I have so many of my readers who do not know you and/or know very little about you. Kindly permit me to introduce you to them.

Rishi was the British Chancellor of the Exchequer from February 2020 to July 2022 and resigned following the Chris Pincher scandal, according to Metro.

He is an intelligent Economist and a smart Politician. These qualities could be attributed to his private schooling at the £45,934-a-year Winchester College and graduating from Politics, Philosophy and Economics (PPE) at the University of Oxford.

He is currently campaigning for the role of the next British Prime Minister. And part of his manifesto in reference to education is to do the following:

1. Crackdown on university degrees that do not improve students ‘earning potential’ if he becomes the next prime minister.
2. Introduce a new British Baccalaureate, which would require pupils to continue studying core subjects such as mathematics and English Language until they complete school at 18.
3. Pledged to improve professional development for teachers, and give school trusts an ‘accountability holiday’ for two years after taking on underperforming schools.
4. Work to expand the use of artificial intelligence and digital technology in classrooms so as to reduce teachers’ workloads and improve the quality of teaching in underperforming areas.

Do not misunderstand me, I love and very much support all the ideas of the manifesto, my only problem is with number one.

Although no examples were given, which I suppose careful consideration would be put before cracking down on even the assumed least degrees.

To go ahead with my suggestions on what to do instead. I want to first critically present some highlights that I believe completely fault this idea.

1. The True Importance of Education to the Society

There has been a long present century argument on not only the importance of a university degree but also the importance of universities at large to an individual.

Turn in between two, more of the older generation would argue positively in support of getting a university degree, while most millennials and gen-z (like myself ) that have seen how money and a good life are achievable with or without a university degree may question the need or argue negatively.

My personal reservation is always the fact that education was never designed to make us rich but to make us civil.

However, just like you mentioned ‘A good education is the closest thing we have to a silver bullet when it comes to making people’s lives better.’

So, why then do we have to determine which and which not degree is important and less?

2. Sustainability of Education to the Human Race

When I studied Forestry Engineering in Spain, My Geobotany professor explained the importance of all living species by making reference to an aeroplane and how important even the smallest piece of nut is for the plane to safely fly.

While scientists are coming up with new lists of species in danger of extinction and how to preserve them, why then are humans endangering some of our human knowledge species?

Also, I argue that this crackdown will be detrimental to our human civilisation. Especially, when you relate it to Great Britain which has thrived through colonialism, cultural, and language richness.

3. Respect for Historical Academics in those fields of study

Though no examples were given, students with a degree in languages, linguistics, and classics have the least employable degrees, according to the latest figures.

When I read this, I thought about the likes of William Shakespeare and other great contributors to this field, globally. And I felt how they would be less and less represented until finally, they vanish.

As we humans genetically have the ability to keep and discard.

Not only that, even now, I know the state of devastation some academics and students are going through in various universities in the UK (including mine) because universities are closing down departments and courses that are not fetching them so much money.

Now, here are my suggestions…

1. Adopt United States of America’s Major and Minor System

While I know some of my mates that studied for example BSc Business Management and Marketing, BSc Adult Nursing and Mental health, etc., the difference with what Americans are doing is that ultimately, majors are primary concentrations that make up the bulk of the classes, and minors are secondary focuses that can complement the major but don’t always need to.

I have an American friend who studied BSc in Computer Science (Major) and Entrepreneurship (Minor). This has equipped him to be very employable and to even start his own business.

I strongly believe that introducing this idea and implementing it constructively shall help save some departments and the academics there. And, also motivate more students to consider a university degree.

2. Generalise University Modules

When I started my university education in Nigeria with BSc in Agricultural Extension, I remember that I was introduced to varieties of modules that were not necessarily related to my course.

For instance, I completed general studies modules which are mostly English Language courses, I also studied two different Mathematical modules, practical, physical, and organic Chemistry, two Biology modules, and two Agricultural Economics modules. And all these were just in my 1st academic year.

Whereas, in the UK, there seems to be a focus to train experts more than generalists.

The world is changing and the world of work is following suit. Employers need employees who know little about a lot.

I recently graduated with a degree in BSc Business Management. Although, I tried as much as possible to take advantage of the electives to tailor my degree according to my interest. There were still courses outside my reach that I wished I had, like modules in Business Law, Venture Capital, Taxation, Property, etc.

Some students because of their degrees offered them though.

3. Create a Russell Group of colleges for those degrees

I find it difficult sometimes that some critical laws are left in the hands of very few, which most times are not even directly affected.

I mean, why are men predominately involved in abortion rights; why are scientists the only ones that have the right to determine what happens to our DNA sharing with celestial bodies, etc?

Why can’t the academics and experts in these fields of study be left to prove their relevance to society?

I was left in awe when a friend that studied dance was explaining the science of dancing and body movements to me. I also have another friend that is interested in using the knowledge of his sociology and anthropology degree to create video games that will educate kids intentionally about other cultures and also a way to preserve our human civilisation and trends.

And even if harsh policies are mandatory, why not practically create exclusive colleges of learning for the people that a passionately interested in this subject to attend?

In Summary

In all honesty, Mr. Sunak, as a business graduate I probably understand the concerns and motivation behind this aspect of your manifesto. I understand the financial strain on the government to fund some degrees via student loans and not being able to recover those. I also can imagine the pressure on the government on rising unemployment and growing inflation.

But, I also come with this point of argument — if humans should start eliminating courses based on relevance, then perhaps, in the next 50 to 100 years mankind will only be left to study computer-related courses. And that is if artificial intelligence has not taken even that away from us.

Photo / A picture of Former British Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak (Picture source: Metro)

Disclaimer: I am not a political person. In fact, although I often time find myself studying leadership styles and qualities, I still consider myself as someone that knows near to nothing about politics.

Thus, this open letter is not politically induced in any form! The motivation behind it is because it concerns ‘Education’. And that is a value I am very passionate about.