Universities announce fee hikes

All three local universities announced raised fees yesterday, with the new intake paying between 3 to 20 per cent more than previously, following the lead of polytechnics and ITEs, who raised their fees last month. This includes the 8 per cent increase that was deferred last year due to the economic downturn.

Raising fees this soon after a rough recession, from which we are still feeling its effects, is a questionable move at best. Some faculties have sharper raises than others: architecture and business programmes have fees increased by 7 per cent, while law and pharmacy programmes raised fees by 10 per cent. All three universities were quick to point out they have financial assistance plans in place "so that no deserving student would be deprived of a place because of inability of pay".

The press was also quick to play up the differences in the fee hikes between citizens and foreigners, and equally quick to point out the increased costs will still appeal to foreign students.

The hike is in line with the Government's move to sharpen the differentiation between citizens and non-citizens, to reflect the responsibilities and privileges of citizenship, schools said.

However, NTU believes, "even with the differentiation, the tuition fees remain internationally competitive and attractive to international students".

These students are also eligible for "a wide range of scholarships". it added.

My question would be, would there be an increased number of scholarships for Singaporeans? Or are we continuing the fine tradition where more scholarships are set aside for foreigners than locals by a large margin?

Two more things worry me: first, university fees are not exactly the cheapest expense. By raising fees, we are increasing the financial burden of students and their parents, and in most cases, graduates leave school with a degree and a debt. The lucky ones find a job quickly, but even then student loans take some time to repay. Casting graduates into the working world with a debt is not only not ideal, but reinforces the "debt is ok" mentality that has me worried.

Second, I believe there is nothing better than education as a leveller. Everyone who seeks a university education should not be denied, but the increased fees will result in potential students opting out because of financial constraints. No matter how many scholarships are awarded, this is inevitable, but I have this nagging feeling that more should be done in this respect, either in the form of more subsidies (which is not necessary without the fee hikes) or by reserving a larger proportion of places for locals.

Update on Friday, March 19, 2010 at 2:13PM by Callan Tham

I realise I wasn't really clear in my second point, so here's another go at it: I think the fee increase will widen the gap between the have and the have-not, and will directly increase the debt burden of graduates. Study loans aren't easy to pay off now, and the fee increase will only make it harder.

The number of scholarships catering to Singaporeans is only peripherally relevant to this point of view.