Strathclyde occupies £9k territory

The University of Strathclyde last week became the latest Scottish institution to set tuition fees at £9,000 a year for students from the rest-of-the-UK (RUK).

Undergraduates from England, Wales and Northern Ireland attending the Glasgow-based institution from the academic year 2012/13 will now face the additional charge after Strathclyde’s governing body, University Court, rubberstamped the plans.

The move leaves the university, which currently has an RUK student population of around 450, on a level playing field with the likes of Aberdeen and Dundee after a cap of £27,000 was imposed.

Senior management insisted a bursary fund of up to £5 million is planned to ensure talented prospective students can still afford to study at Strathclyde. However, the decision sparked anger among students and staff who claimed the levels set showcased Strathclyde as "motivated purely by profit".

Principal Professor Jim McDonald said support mechanisms put in place by the University would mean a significant number of new students would pay less than £27,000 over the course of four years.

He added: “Strathclyde students have access to a comprehensive range of scholarships, and we are developing our strategy to create a programme for broader-based internships and ‘routes to career’. This will allow us to lever our unparalleled combination of industry, business and public sector partnerships to enhance the experience of our students and further improve employability.

“We will also ensure that those students who run into difficulties also have access to expert financial advice and support through a number of programmes.

“The University will be enhancing these with bursaries targeted at students from low-income backgrounds. Finance should not be, and must not be a barrier to studying at Strathclyde. Our bursary fund, planned to be at the scale of £4-5 million, will offer support to those gifted prospective students in need of financial assistance – a trait that characterises Strathclyde’s approach to access.”

However, Charandeep Singh, president of the University of Strathclyde Students’ Association (USSA), slammed the proposals.

“University Court had an opportunity to show leadership by minimising the impact of RUK fees at Strathclyde and instead, they have chosen to charge the highest possible fees, proving that they have given into peer pressure and are motivated purely by profit," he said.

"USSA has engaged robustly and constructively with the University to produce a student support package which puts ability to learn at the top of the agenda.

“We will continue to push for guarantees that the student support system at Strathclyde places widening access at its core and will be monitoring the impact of these proposals on prospective student numbers.”

The Strathclyde branch of University and College Union (UCU), which represents academics at the institution, echoed the concerns while voicing support for student opposition to the imposition of fees.

Neil Davidson, vice-president of Strathclyde UCU, told The Journal: “If it is unacceptable for Scottish students to pay fees, then there is no moral case for imposing this burden on students from the rest of the UK.

“We regards fees as devisive and exclusionary at any level, but particularly when set at the maximum. This is not the way to build Strathclyde as an open, inclusive institution.”