More than 100 students have lobbied Manchester Metropolitan University managers over plans to cut the number of courses.
Students and lecturers staged a campus protest over proposed reductions in the number of modules they needed to cover as part of their degree.
They accused uni bosses of trying to deliver ‘education on the cheap’.
Senior officials at MMU launched a review of undergraduate courses last year, which recommended a reduction in the total number of units students needed to secure their degrees.
Undergraduate students will have to study four units each year compared to six.
Members of the University and Colleges Union accused managers of trying to short-change learners, saying the changes would lead to dumbing down.
Union officer Martyn Moss said: “Students come to MMU for the rich diversity of teaching on offer, not to have their options reduced and to be short-changed.
“These plans will stop many academics from teaching in their own specialist areas and could put many jobs at risk.”
Last year, the university announced plans to cut 127 posts. But the head of the university denied the teaching review was an attempt to save money.
John Brooks, MMU’s vice-chancellor, said: "The scheme is a raft of curriculum changes that will improve flexibility and will reduce the huge academic and administrative burden associated with the widespread over-assessment of our students.
“Analysis of the workload demands of teaching and learning demonstrate that assessment has grown out of proportion to the direct effort associated with teaching."
He said there were a number of modules which duplicated course material and removing them would cut down on admin time and costs.
No jobs would be cut as a result of the changes and student teaching hours would not be affected, a spokesman confirmed.
Universities are bracing themselves for a raft of funding cuts in the wake of a government spending review.
New education minister David Willetts caused a stir last week when he warned that universities had to find cheaper ways of delivering degrees, although it widely expected that university fees, currently capped at £3,325 a year will be increased.
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Half of of what you learn at university is utter tosh that you will never need or use for the rest of your life anyway.
Also half of the courses are a waste of time and are just set up for people who haven't got a direction in life but want to stay in the education system for a bit longer and stay away from having to do some real work.
Sorry, but the cuts had to happen sometime. Far too many degrees are of no use in the job market and many of these students are not good enough to train to be teachers.
Reality bites!
Cutting the unit numbers for the degrees will only serve to drive students else where. I have just finished my degree at MMU and must say that the standards of the place have declined dramatically in recent years. Tutors often do not respond to correspondence and requests for feedback, even in the 3rd year where these are vital. The university decided to ditch the department offices in favour of student information points. The information point within the building I was based was staffed by very rude people who made it very plain that they could not be bothered to assist students in the slightest. The Student's union has managed to badly mis-manage its facilities and then wonder why it is loosing money despite the prime location.
Many units are already solely based online with no lecture or contact time at all, which makes me wonder what on earth are our tuition fees going to pay these lecturers for? Anyone with half a brain upload nots and mark an essay. I loved my time as a student, but due to the experience of moving out, growing in self confidence and the people I met. As for the degree itself I feel it was a waste of money. Due to the economic climate I am now one of the many graduating into unemployment.