Glasgow SRC blasts national RUK fees strategy as 'wrong'

A student leader at one of Scotland’s oldest universities has launched a scathing attack on the campaigning orchestrated by unions nationwide in the build-up to last month’s wave of announcements on rest-of-UK (RUK) fees.

Stuart Ritchie, president of Glasgow University Students’ Representative Council (GUSRC), slammed the strategy of the National Union of Students (NUS) Scotland and affiliated students associations across the country as “wrong” and a source of weakened input in senior management discussions.

The criticism comes after the University of Glasgow elected to charge the majority of students from England, Wales and Northern Ireland £6,750 a year from 2012 onwards, taking the cost of a four-year degree to £26,000 after an introductory bursary or fee waiver was promised to all first years. Undergraduates undertaking courses in medicine, dentistry and veterinary medicine are to be asked for £9,000 a year with no cap imposed, however.

The announcement leaves Glasgow a largely cheaper option for undergraduates than ancient colleagues Edinburgh and St Andrews – who opted to introduce a maximum of £36,000 - and neighbour Strathclyde after a cap of £27,000 was established.

"I think the fact that I have been on the working group and involved in the discussions from day one, we have actively pushed the university to try and provide us with concrete data about how fees would be broken down and what assistance would look like," Ritchie told The Journal.

"It could actually work out a total for those from a low income background closer to £14,000 rather than £26,000. There are substantial packages in there if they implement them and there is enough there.

"But I think it is testament to the fact that you get further working with the university than you do working against it. And I think that the NUS strategy and the strategies by other student unions has been wrong. It has been the wrong strategy."

NUS Scotland reacted furiously to the comments, claiming recent concessions included in the Scottish Government Spending Review such as increased funding for student support, demonstrated the effectiveness of national campaigning.

Robin Parker, president of the organisation, said: "This seems to be an incredibly relaxed attitude towards a huge increase in tuition fees. I don't think students from England, Wales or Northern Ireland going to the University of Glasgow over the next few years will thank their president for seemingly condoning the principal's decision to set £26,000 degrees, a decision which will leave many Glasgow students from the rest of the UK spending even more than those at Oxford or Cambridge.

"I would gently suggest that he speak to Glasgow students from the rest of the UK first before claiming a £26,000 degree cost as some kind of victory."

Meanwhile, head of GUSRC Ritchie called on the institution to ensure access rates from low income backgrounds are improved yet conceded an introductory bursary of £1,000 for all new students remained an unnecessary “marketing gimmick”.

He added: “I’m pleased the university hasn’t set fees at a toxic £9,000 but let’s be honest it is still £27,000. Although it will be spread across four years they haven’t set a fee level that is cheaper than Aberdeen or Strathclyde.

“Equally, I think the introduction of an introductory bursary has to come in as a cash incentive. It has to be spendable cash or else I’m struggling to see the point because it is unlikely, in my opinion, that the student will be the one paying the fee anyway.

“I think it’ll be implemented in practice though it is slightly tokenistic in its design to be a marketing gimmick. It’s designed to set us aside from Heriot-Watt or Strathclyde. My concern about that is that I don’t think we needed to do that in the first place."

Dave Anderson, president of the Glasgow University branch of University and College Union (UCU), welcomed the decision to avoid £9,000 fees across the full four-years of study.

He said: “UCUG believes that while Scottish universities have been put in a very difficult position because of the Westminster government’s clear desire to create a marketplace in higher education, Glasgow University Court has shown a level of restraint sadly lacking elsewhere in the Scotland's Universities."

Professor Anton Muscatelli, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Glasgow, said the decision to forego maximum levels across the board was aimed at ensuring the higher education institution remained "inclusive" to all.

“We have also been able to be innovative and imaginative in coming up with a package of measures which, we hope, will make the choice of studying at the University of Glasgow even more appealing,” he added.