David Linsay Willetts, a British Conservative Party politician and the Minister of State for Universities and Science, is unhappy with the Universities' teaching aspects in the country.
Willetts feels that the universities are spending more time on research projects to enhance their personal image rather than teaching students, failing to justify their ever-increasing tuition fee.
The comments were made in a report for the Social Market Foundation (SMF).
Willetts said that it was 'surprising' that the university lectures are dedicating less time teaching their students.
He argues that for several years, universities have concentrated basically more on research to make way for grants into the campus, 'because that is where the funding and prestige came from.'
'The pendulum has swung too far away from teaching,' the minister said in the report.
The report claimed that lecturers spent 55 per cent of their time teaching 50 years ago, a figure which has climbed to 64 per cent in the past, but has now come down to 40 per cent. On the other hand the average time spent teaching students also decreased from 14.8 hours a week to 12.2. Plus, today's teaching takes place in huge classrooms with more number of students.
"Our analysis suggests that despite decades of change, the pre-Robbins universities appear to be more focused on research now than at any other time,' the report said. Given the growth in the number of students, even at these older institutions, it is surprising that the proportion of academic time devoted to teaching them appears to have fallen from 55% to 40%'.
"Looking back we will wonder how the higher education system was ever allowed to become so lopsided away from teaching," Willetts said.
"Students aren't merely buying a degree, as they might a holiday,' Mr Willetts told Daily Mail UK. "They are engaging in something inherently worthwhile and also investing in their future. The paradox is that unleashing the forces of consumerism with more information for prospective students and funding following their choices is the best way of bringing back traditional academic focus on high-quality teaching."
"David Willetts provides a compelling case for expanding higher education. This is our best bet for equipping the UK economy with the skills it needs and improving social mobility," SMF director Emran Mian said in the report.
