One hundred and sixty-one 16 to 18 year old White working class youngsters currently enrolled on post-school vocational courses at two further education colleges in central London viewed four advertisements designed to arouse interest in the idea of going to university. Two of the advertisements contain visual images with no accompanying text; two contain purely documentary information. Each advertisement relates to either a hedonistic or a utilitarian theme. Participants' responses were analyzed with respect to a person's financial status, prior knowledge of the characteristics of university life, perceptions that university attendance carries a high-risk of not obtaining long-term financial benefit, levels of personal ambition, and fear of possible social isolation consequent to enrolling on an undergraduate programme.