Speaking at the Southbank University, Cable said he was considering a graduate tax where, instead of tuition fees, those with degrees would repay the cost of further education on a sliding scale based on their income.
Commenting on Cable's speech on higher education, Sonja Stockton (pictured), director of recruitment for PricewaterhouseCoopers, said: "Whether it's called a graduate tax or a student loan, the bottom line is, university education has a price, and needs to be seen as an investment. Few of us, let alone 18 year-olds, would spend almost £20,000 without considering whether the product is right for us. Students shouldn't consider the investment they are making in their long-term career prospects and education any differently.
"The education starts with understanding the implications of the study path they are choosing, and universities, schools and employers all need to play a part in that."
And commenting on two-year degrees, she added: "What we could be looking at is simply a return to the mix of vocational education and qualifications previously enjoyed in the polytechnic era, shifting the emphasis currently on three- or four-year degree courses.
"A two-year intensive degree course, if linked to a meaningful period of work experience, could work for some courses. Teaching degrees and some accountancy courses already operate like this. It means graduates arrive at the workplace with the skills, education and personal development already in gear.
"A two-year degree cycle would certainly focus students' minds on getting the right skills and experiences as early as possible, but it would only work in certain areas. We can't compromise opportunities to develop the whole person at university, gain valuable skills and research collateral that longer degree cycles allow.
"Talented students, who are clear about their long-term career ambitions and seek out work experience to apply what they have learned, could be more attractive to, and more closely linked with, employers than they are now."
