A former White House adviser who will be Durham University's next chancellor has said current university fees could have put her off studying for a degree.
Fiona Hill said she would have "definitely rethought" higher education if she "had to take out massive loans".
The 57-year-old miner's daughter said the education system needed a "rethink" to be more accessible to more people.
The government said its policies had helped greater numbers of disadvantaged students go to university.
Dr Hill, who worked for George W Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump, will take up her university role next year.
Speaking to BBC Newscast, Dr Hill, a specialist in Russian and European geopolitics, said the cost of higher education had been a personal interest her "whole life".
