A major new Policy Exchange report argues that England’s higher education system is broken beyond tinkering: too many students, too much debt, collapsing standards and a funding model that serves nobody well. For Northern Ireland, where one in five of our students cross the water to study, the consequences are closer to home than you might think.
Almost exactly ten years ago, the student leaders of Queen’s University Students’ Union sat in a meeting room, worried. As one of the Vice Presidents of the Union at the time, I was among them. The newly-elected Conservative-Lib Dem coalition was announcing plans to treble university tuition fees from £3,000 a year to £9,000 a year. We were worrying because we needed to take action on behalf of our student members, but didn’t know if they would be with us. …
Tuition fees could be set to rise in Northern Ireland following budget cuts to the Department of Education and Learning. In an interview with the BBC’s Inside Politics, First Minister Peter Robinson suggested that fees could be increased. “There may well be an opportunity for us to look at tuition fees and see whether that cuts some slack to the universities.”
In Northern Ireland we have the unique situation where we can claim dual nationality. The bulk of the population is split between those who claim Irish citizenship and those who claim British citizenship. Following the news that sixth form pupils in the UK who hold Irish passports qualify for free university tuition in Scotland, the question arises whether the passport that a person from Northern Ireland holds, is the definitive mark of their nationality. It was originally believed that students …
Interesting snippet from across the water regarding the £9k fees students from Northern Ireland now have to pay if they want to follow what’s become for many a traditional route to graduation at Glasgow, Edinburgh, or St Andrews. Dundee even runs a fairly successful degree course in Northern Irish law. The Rutherglen Reformer reports a spat in the House of Lords: Peers from all sides angrily hit out at the “unfairness” of allowing Scottish students to study for free at …
With the headlines grabbed on Thursday, and the Northern Ireland First and deputy First Ministers off to Hollywood [USA], the only thing left for Employment and Learning Minister, Stephen Farry, to do was to inform the NI Assembly of the details on tuition fees. According to the BBC report “These decisions are a clear indication that the executive is working for Northern Ireland,” [Stephen Farry] said. “For our future students, for our graduates and indeed for their families and the economy. “A considerable element of …
THE decision to freeze student fees here seems to be going down well, but it won’t come without cost. And that cost – half of it – will be borne by the Department of Employment and Learning. It would be difficult to argue that learning should come at the expense of employment services in the middle of a recession when the jobless total is almost twice what the department is budgeted to deal with. As the Minister said in June, …
As an addendum to the local decision to peg tuition fees at the current level. Here’s a good video piece from the Daily Telegraph on the UK Government’s still rather nebulous proposal to rank Universities… The White Paper they are discussing was published earlier in the summer… It also contains an incentive measure to encourage universities to drop their fees from £9k to less than £7,500; ie they can bid for some of 20,000 extra under graduate places. Of course, …
As the BBC reports, Northern Ireland Employment and Learning Minister, Stephen Farry, has confirmed that the bread promised by the First and deputy First Ministers in July, will be on the menu. But we’ll have to wait until Monday to see the details – the NI Assembly being the appropriate place to make such an announcement. [But we need headlines now! – Ed] Indeed. Those details would include whether or not the proposals include students from England, Scotland and Wales. Because there …
Good piece from Liam Clarke noting that the Scottish First Minister’s cunning plan to close the funding hole in his Higher Education budget by charging non Scotland domiciled students up to £9,000 pa whilst delivering it free to local students is facing a legal challenge, creates further problems for Higher Education minister Stephen Farry… It’s a particular problem for Queens – a member of the prestigious Russell Group of Universities, many of whom will have the freedom in England to …
From the BBC Danny Kennedy is considering his options: He added: “As I have said in the Assembly, I want a ‘made in Northern Ireland’ approach to student fees. What is done in London and Cardiff undoubtedly holds lessons for us, but the point of devolution is to devise local solutions.” Interestingly he highlights the brain drain effect: However, Mr Kennedy said the situation in Wales differs from Northern Ireland in the sense that it “imports” a lot of students, …
Northern Ireland MPs were united in their comfort zone yesterday to oppose the big rise in university tuition fees, a position said to be endorsed by leading business woman Joanna Stuart conducting a review into the local scene. But what about Queen’s which is committed to keeping its place in the elite Russell Group as a leading research and teaching university? While Peter Gregson the Queen’s vice chancellor has stayed mum as far as I can see, Russell Group reaction to yesterday’s vote …
OK the UK Goverment have: 1) Scrapped the Severn Barrage (£30bn.) 2) Scrapped St Athan’s Defence Academy (£14bn) 3) Delayed Great Western Electrification in Wales (£1bn) 4) Closed Newport Passport Office…300 jobs gone. 5) Cut S4C funding by £20m p.a. We, on the other hand, have decided to subsidise English Universities by up to £110m p.a.. We are a kind and appreciative nation I know…..but this can’t be sensible. DewiWelsh Nationalist. Rugby Fan. Know a bit about History and Railways…
Have I missed a burning debate about university tuition fees in NI? I thought not. But better late than never. It’s surely obvious that Joanne Stuart’s recommendation to keep them at their present £3290 level is out of date – if it ever was up to date. The DEL report is understood to favour keeping the current fees and improving maintenance grants. Sir Reg has hinted that the financial crisis could affect any moves to be more generous to students. …
