Town or gown: Is university still the obvious path?

Apprenticeships offer an alternative for North Oxford school-leavers.

In this corner of Oxford, a university education is the norm. Many residents hold not just one degree, but two or more. For the children who go to school here, the university has a constant presence, from the colleges of St Hugh’s and Wolfson, to the blue plaque marking the home of one of Oxford’s most famous fellows, J.R.R. Tolkien.

This is North Oxford Central, where 60% of residents aged 16 years or over have an undergraduate university degree or higher, according to the 2021 England and Wales Census.

It’s rare for an area to be so graduate dense. Outside of London, only seven other areas across England and Wales have such a high proportion of university graduates.

This is also an affluent residential area, and the streets become quieter and more leafy the farther north you wander. The neighbourhood has a high concentration of selective independent schools, and around 35% of residents aged 16 years and over in North Central Oxford are employed in the education sector, whether teaching at the university or at local schools, according to 2021 Census data.

It’s little surprise, then, that many parents choose to send their children to one of the area’s numerous schools, many with the hope that their children will go on to university, whether in Oxford or elsewhere.

Is university still worth the price tag?

University graduates are entering an increasingly tough job market. Figures released in February by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that unemployment among 16–24 year olds climbed to 16.1% in the final three months of 2025, the highest rate since 2014. In real terms, graduate salaries have dropped to an average £26,500 in 2024, down from £30,000 in 2007, according to the ONS’s Labour Force Survey.

Increasing numbers of graduates have recently voiced frustration with the student loan system, with many claiming that the long-term impact on take-home salaries was not fully made clear, and that monthly deductions add to financial pressures from a weak labour market and high living costs.

Plan 2 loans apply to students in England who started university between September 2012 and July 2023. Under the scheme, the interest rate is set by the current Retail Prices Index (RPI) plus 3%, depending on earnings. In practice, this has meant the interest accrued each month outweighs monthly repayments for many borrowers.

Many school-leavers in north Oxford might be expected to go to university. But when a degree no longer guarantees career stability or strong earning prospects, alternative pathways, such as apprenticeships, are attracting more attention.

Are apprenticeships a solution?

The government announced reforms to the apprenticeship system in December 2025, including 50,000 additional training places. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer also dropped the target set by former Labour PM Tony Blair to send 50% of children to university. He instead set the aim for two-thirds of young people to gain higher-level skills, through university, further education, or a ‘gold standard’ apprenticeship, before turning 25.

Apprenticeship uptake in England is rising. Figures from the Department for Education show that apprenticeship starts increased by 7.7% to 142,780 from August 2025 to October 2025, compared to the previous year.

Apprenticeships allow young people to earn a salary while gaining qualifications, avoiding the debt that comes with a university degree. In north Oxford, less than 1% of residents have completed an apprenticeship, lower than the national average of 4.4% in England and Wales, according to the 2021 Census.

Paul Jones, Apprenticeships Director at Oxford Professional Education, an apprenticeship provider based in north Oxford, welcomed the increased government investment.

‘It is absolutely right that both pathways [university and apprenticeships] are available to young people.’

But Mr Jones cautioned that a focus on younger people could disadvantage adults seeking to up-skill or retrain. Some common misconceptions still surround apprenticeships, with many people assuming that apprenticeships are intended only for 16–18 year olds.

‘This is not the case,’ he said. In fact, those aged 25 and over are the most common age group to take up apprenticeships.

He acknowledged that apprenticeships still carry a stigma, partly due to the assumption that they are limited to trades rather than professional qualifications, a belief which is inaccurate.

He added that the best choice of pathway for school-leavers depends on the skills, interests and career goals of each individual.

For students in Oxford, the choice between university and apprenticeships is theirs to make.