Students starting university next year can expect to graduate with debts averaging almost £60,000, student guide Push.co.uk claimed today.
Undergraduates enrolling on courses in England can expect to owe £59,100 when degrees finish.
Push.co.uk interviewed more than 2,800 undergraduates at 115 university campuses across Britain.
The report found that students starting university in autumn 2010 were projected to accumulate debts of £24,100 when they graduate. For those starting degrees this September, the total is projected to rise by more than eight per cent to £26,100.
The most expensive place to study is believed to be University College London where students already face costs of £57,110 to complete the average degree, followed by £45,139 at the Royal Veterinary College, London.
But the annual guide claims that students across England face being charged a similar amount when tuition fees soar in 2012.
Push warned that the Government’s loans system would not cover the full cost of a three-year degree for many students.
A quarter of students’ debts are currently owed to sources other than the Government, including parents, bank overdrafts and credit cards.
And industry experts warn this will make it even harder for wannabe homeowners to get on the ladder.
Gemma Harle, managing director at Tenet Lime, said: “The higher university fees will make it harder for people to get on the property ladder or even move up the ladder.
“I think lenders are going to have to look at changes in their products and criteria to recognise that a high number of new professionals will have higher level of debt but this will be counterbalanced by their future earning potential."
And she added: “Financial advisers should also be getting involved earlier to help young people with their financial planning well before they are considering a property purchase.”
Melanie Bien, director at Private Finance, said: "Parents who are already overstretched by the higher cost of living will find higher university fees an unwelcome headache.
"Although fees won't have to be paid back until the child is earning a certain amount, if they also want to get on the housing ladder at some point they will definitely need parental assistance as they will have less money available.
"With lenders using affordability calculations, university fees that need to be paid back will be taken into account, reducing the amount the graduate can borrow. This is likely to mean that parents are increasingly called upon the bridge the gap."
