What is a degree worth?

This article in the Daily Mail online seems to indicate that having a degree no longer makes the difference it used to in terms of earning power. University chiefs are looking to double fees to £6500/year, with some vice chancellors pushing for fees of up to £20K/year, arguing that graduates will earn on average £400K more over the course of a lifetime.

A recent study from the University of Warwickshire places the pay premium for a university graduate in arts and humanities at just £2.8K/year.

Certainly since I left school, having a degree has gone from being something worthy of note to being rather a non-issue... unless you're applying to work at the Open University, that is, where a first degree is still a minimum requirement.