Impact of Economic Downturn in UK Caused by COVID-19 on Students

This essay examines the importance of the economic downturn in the UK, particularly its impact on students. It discusses how COVID-19 restrictions have negatively affected the UK economy and the subsequent consequences for students' education and future employment opportunities. The essay highlights the challenges students face, such as increased tuition fees and intense job market competition. It also explores how students can adapt by seeking affordable educational resources and enhancing their skill sets. Furthermore, the essay presents an opposing argument, suggesting that the economic downturn's negative impacts will be short-lived due to an expected swift economic recovery. The report concludes that while the economic crisis poses significant challenges for students, understanding its implications and proactively addressing them is crucial for their academic and professional success. Desklib provides resources and study tools to help students navigate these challenges.

Component 2:
Argumentative
Essay

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY ..................................................................................................................................3
Importance of economic downturn in UK for students ..............................................................3
Explanation of application of various aspects of degrading economic conditions by a student 4
An opposing argument against the topic ...................................................................................5
CONCLUSION ...............................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8

INTRODUCTION
The COVID-19 pandemic changed the global business environment within few months.
Global supply chain and economic conditions were negatively affected because of pandemic
trade restrictions imposed by governments all over the globe. The stoppage of economic activity
because of COVID-19 trade restrictions lowered purchasing power of consumers. The luxury car
industry including Toyota is also negatively affected by the economic downturn in UK. In
addition to this, lowering economic conditions and social distancing restrictions have also
changed educational activities and life of students in a negative manner (Powell, 2019). The
topic of this report is economic downturn in UK caused by COVID-19 restrictions. This report
looks at importance of economic downturn in UK for students and the impact it has on students.
In addition to this the way in which this topic can be applied by students is explained in this
report. This report also includes an opposing argument against the topic.
MAIN BODY
Importance of economic downturn in UK for students
The economic conditions of a country have direct impact on the lives of the students,
This is because it impacts the educational infrastructure and quality of education revived by the
students. COVID-19 has negatively affected both developed and developing economies all over
the globe. As per the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development has stated that
UK economy will face the most damaging economic consequences of COVID-19 out of all the
developed nations in Europe. UK economy will probably get reduced by 11.5% in 2020 which is
higher than economic decreased Germany, Italy, France and Spain (Coronavirus: UK economy
could be among worst hit of leading nations, says OECD, 2020). This economic condition will
impact daily lives of students and it is important for students seeking higher education to gain
profound understanding of this topic. This is because during an economic crisis, the slowdown of
economy is associated with lowering of hourly wage rates, numbers of hours worked and the
amount of public and private funds available for education institutions situated in the country
(Gant, Walford and Terry, 2021). In addition to this topic of economic crisis in UK is of high
significance for students as it not only affects the current education provided by educational
institutions but also affects the future employment opportunities available for students after
completion of their higher education. The primary negative consequence of economic downturn

on students is that it increases difficulties for guardians and parents to bear the costs of education
of any students in their family. They are not able to purchase books and provide higher education
fees for students because of low economic growth. This harms quality of education received by
students as they are not able to afford educational material required to succeed in higher
education (Hill, 2021). The economic crisis of UK also changes lives of students as it can be
seen that less educated and low skilled workers suffer more during the economic crisis which
increases supports of parents towards higher education students as it helps them survive any
economic crisis in the future. This impacts the educational outcome of students which increases
the topic of current economic downturn in the UK. In addition to this for fresh graduates,
economic downturn in UK impacts their future prospects in academia and employment. This is
because it sops rise in starting salaries and every student has to face intense competition in the
labour market for underpaying jobs. It is important for students to determine the impact of on-
going economic crisis on the job market in order to increase their skills so that they are able to
secure high paying jobs in their field after graduation.
Explanation of application of various aspects of degrading economic conditions by a student
The primary aspect of degrading economic condition in UK is that it increases the fees
required to gain high education. The charges for tuition, books and other educational material
increases which creates various challenges for students as it increases financial burdens of
students. This aspect of the topic can be applied by a student to search for affordable ways to
gain educational materials (Jeffries, Curtis and Conner, 2020). Students need to find online
spaces which offer e-books and digital reading material on various topics of their academic field
at affordable prices compared to the rest of the market. This will help students continue their
educational journey in an affordable manner and reduce financial burden of higher education.
In addition to this another aspect of degrading economic conditions in UK higher
education degrees do not guarantee employment. This is because of increased competition in the
labour market as fresh jobless collage graduates seek any job n order to gain financial stability.
higher education degrees do not ensure access to high paying job during an economic downturn.
The current economic slowdown in UK and lack of economic activity in global supply chain
because of COVID-19 trade restrictions have lead to many business engaging in mass lay-offs.
7,000 jobs will be reduced by M&S because of mass lay-offs. This will further increase
difficulties for students in Universities gaining collage level employment or employment after

their graduation. This aspect of economic degradation can be applied by students to increase
their skill-set and experience. This will increase their suitability for recruiters and hep them face
negative impact of economic downturn. This can be completed by identification of
employability skills in demand in the current labour market and future trends which will affect
employability in their profession (Derevyankina and Yankovskaya, 2020). In addition to this
seeking internship at reputed company will also help students enhance their employability and
gain employment at company swiftly in comparison to other candidates during an economic
crisis. In addition to this, attending networking events such as seminars, panels, mixers,
workshops and informational events to build skills, industry knowledge and credentials which
provides access to communication with recruiters at big corporations.
An opposing argument against the topic
The economic environment created by COVID-19 will not have serious impact on
education sector and students and will not hamper employment opportunities of students in long-
term. This is an opposing view to the topic the lowering economic conditions in UK will have
negligible impact on students and economic conditions will quickly recover from the pandemic.
The International Monetary funds is one of the leading voices which supports the view that the
global economy and economic conditions in UK specifically will face broader and rapid
expansion. This positive view towards swift economic recovery of UK is in stark contrast to the
perspectives which state the current economic downturn will have dramatic negative
consequences on UK. In addition to this, the positive perspective towards economy recovery
offers opposing views to the notion that students will face harsh conditions because of the
economic downturn in UK. The UK is expected to grow by 5.3% in 2021 and by 5.1% in 2021,
making it the fastest growing G7 country at the end of forecast period (Britain is ‘bouncing back’
into the same old economy, 2021). This will have positive impact on students as they will gain
access to better quality education because of economic growth. Economic growth in UK will
increase employment opportunities for students and also assist in construction of start-up
businesses by fresh graduates who aim to become an entrepreneur. The miniscule negative
consequence of pandemic on the economy of UK will fade away with increase in vaccination on
global scale and reduction in COVID-119 cases. Apart from this, Bank of England has stated that
UK economy is set to expand at the fastest rate since World War Two because of removal of
COVID-19 restrictions in UK. As per the Bank of England the UK economy is expected to grow

by 7.25% with averment expenditure restricting job looses in the country (Covid-19: UK
economy to bounce back and jab site privacy fears, 2021). This will be highly beneficial to
students as it will encourage increased government endowments towards educational institution
providing aid to students seeking affordable quality academic experience. These views are in
oppose the idea the current economic downturn in UK will have significant long term negative
impacts on daily lives of students.

CONCLUSION
From the above report it is determined that the current economic environment of UK has
been damaged because of COVID-19 trade restrictions. These negative economic conditions of
UK have negative outcome on quality of education present for University level students. The
topic of economic downturn in UK because of COVID-19 is highly important topic for students
as it impacts current education and future professional opportunities of the students. There are
various negative consequences of economic downturn on students with the primary being lack of
jobs and intense competition n the labour market. This will decrease the usefulness of graduation
and higher education degrees in UK market as mass lay-offs in UK will increase unemployment
and reduce well-paying jobs in the country. The opposing perspective to this topic is that the
negative consequences of economic slowdown experienced by UK will be short-lived and there
will be no significant negative outcome on students. This is because soon economic environment
in UK will be better in UK soon.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Derevyankina, E. S. and Yankovskaya, D. G., 2020. The impact of Covid-19 on supply chain
management and global economy development. International Journal of Supply Chain
Management, pp.765-774.
Gant, R., Walford, N. and Terry, P., 2021. Alcohol and personal security in the built
environment: student engagement in the night-time economy of Kingston upon Thames,
London, UK. The London Journal, 46(2). pp.187-213.
Hill, B., 2021. An introduction to economics: Concepts for students of agriculture and the rural
sector. CABI.
Jeffries, D., Curtis, D. D. and Conner, L. N., 2020. Student factors influencing STEM subject
choice in year 12: A structural equation model using PISA/LSAY data. International
Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 18(3). pp.441-461.
Powell, M. ed., 2019. Understanding the mixed economy of welfare. Policy Press.
Online
Coronavirus: UK economy could be among worst hit of leading nations, says OECD, 2020.
[Online] Available through <https://www.bbc.com/news/business-52991913>
Britain is ‘bouncing back’ into the same old economy, 2021. [Online] Available through
<https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/apr/10/britain-is-bouncing-back-into-the-
same-old-economy>
Covid-19: UK economy to bounce back and jab site privacy fears, 2021. [Online] Available
through <https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-57010831>