You have it exactly right. When your nation's best and brightest don't have a chance at higher education we are all the poorer for it.
When you can only draw on a smaller pool (those whose Dad can afford it) then you will obviously impoverish the standard of graduates.
If I am not mistaken, you can be an absolute moron with no passing grades in high school and you can still pay for entrance to a law degree at Bond Uni. Simply hand over the money and you're in.
What will the quality of that lawyer be? How about an Engineer or a doctor under those conditions?