Theresa May will on Monday attack Britain’s “outdated attitude” to university education as she says too many people take degrees and are charged too much money for their courses.

The Prime Minister will suggest that snobbery towards vocational training has created a belief that it is “something for other people’s children” as she aims to create parity between academic and technical education for over-18s.

Announcing a review of tertiary education and university funding, Mrs May will admit that the current system of tuition fees is not working because the amount students pay for their courses bears no relation to the “cost or quality of their course”.

The year-long review will be asked to look at ways of reforming funding, with Damian Hinds, the Education Secretary, favouring cuts in fees for arts and social science courses which are the most profitable for universities but often deliver the least benefit to students.

Mrs May, who will unveil the plans at a speech in Derby, wants teenagers to be able to make “more effective choices” when they leave school rather than simply opting for academic subjects at university because they regard vocational training as second-class.