The report said that for more selective universities, such as those in the Russell Group who tend to ask for higher A-level grades, mathematics requirements can be a useful filtering tool.

BBC: Universities 'dumbing down on maths' to fill places

"I think some people who are in mathematics, teaching mathematics in college or are in mathematics professions have a much higher expectation of what those standards would be than someone who is going to go into college in another field ... law, social sciences and so forth, " Wilhoit said in an interview Monday.

CNN: State, federal education experts mull nationwide standards

There's a debate on a report by the Lords Communications Committee on broadband, and on a Science and Technology Committee report on Higher Education in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.

BBC: Week ahead

For example, a STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) major at MIT would yield a higher score and loan compared to a religious studies major at a lesser ranked school.

FORBES: Student Loan Crisis Solved -- Next Problem?

They hire better-qualified teachers, and more of them, offering higher salaries to lure those with qualifications in difficult subjects such as physics, mathematics and foreign languages, and now have twice as many teachers per pupil as state schools do.

ECONOMIST: Private education