Ancient spires dream a new Ivy League

Universities should be remodelled on the American system with Oxford and Cambridge, Durham and London forming an elite Ivy League, the Secretary of State for Education believes.

The statement from Gillian Shephard, in an interview with The Independent is bound to anger some vice-chancellors, who want a chance to work their way up the league table.

In the first hint of government thinking on universities since the launch of a full-scale inquiry into their future, Mrs Shephard said she was "obsessed" by the need for high standards and well-funded research.

"I am interested in the model that the States presents. Of course, we have a great tradition of our own with very ancient institutions, and it seems to me that together we can produce a solution which can work for us," she said.

The inquiry, headed by Sir Ron Dearing, is not due to report until next year. His appointment was supported by all the political parties, and was designed to put off the issue of university funding and expansion until after the general election. However, Mrs Shephard seemed to pre-empt his findings when she suggested that the future of most universities might be left to market forces.

The Americans had "an enormous and fairly uncharted expansion but a very clear elite cadre," she said. She argued that Britain had to choose between that and the type of higher education which is common in Europe, where students are guaranteed a place if they make the grade.

In effect, the changes contemplated would mean splitting the university system into two or more parts of varying status. Those at the top would receive most of the research funds and might possibly choose to charge higher fees.

European universities tend to be large and to have similar levels of status while American ones vary in size and standards. In the United States, Ivy League universities - such as Yale and Harvard - can attract more research funding and enjoy prestige status.

With one in three 18-year-olds now going to university, compared with one in five a decade ago, Sir Ron has been asked to look at how the system should be funded in the future.

US universities give students bills for their tuition, but such a solution is unlikely to be politically acceptable here. However, ministers do want to encourage universities to seek more sponsorship.

Mrs Shephard's view seems to suggest that she wants to see most research funding going to the top few universities. This trend is already angering vice-chancellors who want excellent departments in otherwise run-of-the- mill universities to receive extra cash. She said it was vital that the best universities had good research facilities.

"Very well-funded research and well-targeted research money encourages excellence in higher education and enables universities to build up excellent departments which improve their overall performance," she said.

A spokesman for the Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Principals said the Americans' elite structure would be welcome but their fees would not. "We should preserve excellence wherever it is to be found, but we should not under any circumstances have an elite set of universities to which only the wealthy can go," he said.

David Watson, director of the University of Brighton and a member of Sir Ron's inquiry team, said there were many positive things about the British university system which should remain. Americanisation could cause it to be fragmented, he said.

"In the United States there is not only the Ivy League and the community colleges but there's also a huge gradation in between.

"You could have an Endsleigh League and a Beazer Homes League as well. Here we have a better sense of community," he said.