Student loans are the bane of most students' lives. After being thrown into the 'real' world, as some might say, and happily getting a job with a starting wage of £10,000 the graduate has to start paying their new found money over to the Inland revenue.

Getting graduates to pay off their student loans seems like an easy task as money is deducted automatically from the holders account when they get a job earning over £10,000, or the money and weekly equivalent.

The loan is cancelled if it still has not been paid at the age of 65 years, if the person becomes disabled or dies. But what if the person moves abroad or never gets a job that earns over the £10,000 threshold?

If a graduate decides to move abroad hoping they can get away with not paying the loan back it doesn't work. They would have to tell the Student Loan Company (SLC) how much yearly income they collect and then their abroad employer will deduct the loan from their account. Although this could be thought to be up to the individuals honesty.

The SLC state on their web site that financial penalties, such as the interest on the loan may been increased up to three times. This will be put into place if there is delay on notifying them. Plus if the individual ever decides to move back to Britain current debts will stand by them until they are 65 years old.

Another option an individual may try as a way of getting out of repaying the loan is never getting a job that earns over £10,000 a year, but this is strongly advised against as members of the Learner Services, Warrington Collegiate Institute discussed, the student does themselves no favours in taking this route as they will be under skilled, thus no employer will want to take them on. What would be the point in attending university to start with?

The amount that has to be paid back on the loan depends on the individual's earnings. The interest rates on loans are low so when paying back the loan the individual will basically be paying back the amount they borrowed.

As the yearly income figure becomes higher so does the repayment amount and has to be carried on until the loan is totally paid off.

Examples of repayment rates can be found by looking in the Financial support for higher education students guide 2001/2003.

Britain is currently in a state of debt to the student loans. It is argued that the loan is not allowing students from poorer backgrounds to attend University and that what used to be a natural progression from 'A' levels has become all about money.

Some students have to take on several jobs to support themselves at university

Mike Phythian Warrington Collegiate Institute student union president said: "Due to the loan not as many people are going to University as there used to be because they can't afford it. Students are recruited more than selected because the numbers are getting lower."

British students are leaving University in thousands of pounds of debt and most are not seeing it as a problem. This is one aspect that has changed since the age of the grants, as the average student would have got an £800 grant 10 years ago.

Parents would not have dreamed about their child being in debt to this much because of a degree but when the government changed the legislation they had no choice but to pay up, but are the government benefiting from the student loan?

According to the National Union of Students (NUS) the government has pocketed a £40 million profit on education through tuition fees, by making sure students have a loan. 10 years ago students used to get a grant of £800.

The NUS estimates that living costs and course costs inside London total at £8375 and outside London £7011. This shows how expensive it could be to live and study in London. Loans will obviously be larger for students in London but this means more debt when they leave University.

Barclays bank estimated that students would have an average debt of £10,000 when they left in summer 2001. This is a 54% rise since 2000.
These shocking figures of the countries debt have not made the government think positively about abolishing tuition fees and replacing the loan with the grant.

Mike Phythian said: "It is quite daunting having to pay the student loan back. Its seems nothing when your spending it throughout the three years!"

A student at Warrington Collegiate said: "At first I went on a bit of a spending spree because your not really told or advised on how to look after your money. Students are bombarded with credit card offers, so I had cards and spent a lot of money of them.
"Also banks offer huge overdrafts, which you just cannot afford to have. I found myself in second year in so much debt. With the pressures of University life if you have financial pressures it can cause a lot of worry. In third year I got myself out of debt by working."

All of the negativity about student loans should not overshadow the positive sides of going to University. Unfortunately paying back the student loan is a main part of student life and there is no way, if you are an honest person, of getting away without paying it.

University gives a person many skills for later life, including social skills and independence.

Having a degree is also the passport for better jobs and a great start in life. Hopefully in the future the government will take note of these factors and change legislation so everyone has the opportunity to be University educated.