Latest news with #CarnegieTrustfortheUniversitiesofScotland
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
John Swinney defends free university tuition as poll says opinions divided
JOHN Swinney has insisted it is 'important' to keep university education free for Scottish students – after a poll suggested almost half of adults support the idea of introducing charges based on the ability to pay. A poll found that 48% of people backed the idea of charging university tuition fees in Scotland, based on the ability to pay. The Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland, which commissioned the research, said this could see students from lower income households paying less or not paying at all, while those students from higher income households would pay more. Swinney, however, said the SNP's long-standing policy of not charging tuition fees on students from Scotland studying at universities north of the Border had helped ensure more youngsters from poorer backgrounds can go to university. READ MORE: The First Minister made clear the Scottish Government 'intends to maintain that policy'. He stated: 'It is important that we continue to have no tuition fees in relation to access to higher and further education. 'I believe access to higher and further education should be based on the ability to learn, not the ability to pay.' His stance comes at a time when some universities are facing difficult decisions as a result of finances – with Dundee University proposing to cut 632 full-time equivalent posts to help it deal with a £35 million deficit. Speaking to journalists during a visit to Kirkintilloch, Swinney said: 'I believe there should be no tuition fees charged for access to higher or further education. 'I believe the ability to learn should determine access to higher and further education, not the ability to pay.' He insisted the Scottish Government's policy approach had resulted in a 'broadening and a widening of access to higher and further education', with the First Minister adding this had happened 'to the extent that we now have record levels of young people from deprived backgrounds taking part in higher education'. Figures from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) last week showed that 16.7% of full-time, first-degree entrants to Scottish universities in 2023-24 came from the country's 20% most deprived areas – up from 16.3% the year before. However, with universities seeing falling numbers of international entrants, he urged the UK Government to do more to help attract students from overseas. HESA data also showed the number of foreign student numbers in Scotland fell from an all-time high of 83,975 in 2022-23 to 73,915 last year – a drop of nearly 12%. With the income from fees charged for overseas students often vital for universities, Swinney stressed the importance of 'stability in university funding'. READ MORE: And here he said it was 'really important' that the UK Government 'puts in place policies that will support and enable the recruitment of international students and remove some of the barriers'. But he also said that universities need to use their 'formidable strength' in research to boost their incomes, with the First Minister adding that 'research income is so fundamental to the financial health of universities'. His comments came as the Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland polling, carried out by Ipsos UK, found of the 1057 adults questioned 44% believed the the Scottish Government should continue to support all first-time undergraduates, while 43% said they would prefer those whose households could afford it to pay at least some of their tuition fees. More than two fifths (43%) agreed too many people in Scotland continue to face barriers to going to university, with those from low-income households (65%) and disadvantaged backgrounds (55%) considered most likely to have difficulties with this. Overall, the research found found almost half of Scottish adults (48%) supported the idea of charging university tuition fees based on the ability to pay, with less than a third (29%) not in favour of this. Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland chief executive Hannah Garrow said: 'We know how complex the higher education funding system is and how much rides on it. 'However, recent discussions on how to finance higher education feel like they are stuck on repeat, while for many people funding continues to be seen as a barrier to access. 'This research shows that there is room for a more nuanced and open discussion on priorities for funding.'
Telegraph
24-03-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Abolish SNP's free university tuition for students who can afford it, say half of Scots
Half of Scots support reintroducing tuition fees for students whose families can afford to pay, new research has revealed. The report, published by the Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland, found 48 per cent of Scottish adults would back the idea of charging fees 'based on the ability to pay'. Fewer than a third of respondents (29 per cent) said they would not back such a move, according to polling conducted by Ipsos Mori. Although there was widespread support for the taxpayer providing 'some form of help' with the cost of fees, Scots were divided over the 'extent and scope' of the assistance that should be provided. While 44 per cent said the Scottish Government should support all first-time undergraduates, 43 per cent said students' families should pay at least some of their fees if they can afford to do so. SNP ministers responded to the findings by vowing to stick with their flagship free-tuition policy, which means that even the wealthiest students pay nothing. But the Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland, which was founded using funds from industrialist Andrew Carnegie in 1901, said the research showed 'there is room for a more nuanced and open discussion on priorities for funding'. The report was published after Scottish universities warned last week that they were 'dangerously reliant' on income from foreign students to survive under the SNP's current funding model. The SNP Government pays universities £1,820 for each Scottish student to cover the 'free' tuition each year but institutions have warned this does not nearly cover the cost of providing courses. Scotland's universities have been keen to recruit international students to help plug the financial black hole, as they charge them up to £40,000 per year in tuition fees. But official figures last week disclosed overseas student numbers dropped by more than 10,000 last year, with industry body Universities Scotland warning this had left the sector 'in a hugely exposed position'. A series of Scotland's most eminent universities warned of cuts, with Edinburgh stating it needs to make urgent savings to plug a £140 million budget gap. Hannah Garrow, Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland chief executive, said: 'We know how complex the higher education funding system is and how much rides on it. 'However, recent discussions on how to finance higher education feel like they are stuck on repeat, while for many people funding continues to be seen as a barrier to access.' Ms Garrow argued the research showed that 'the public can inject some democratic innovation into the debate' if politicians were 'struggling'. Asked where the Scottish Government should prioritise its funding for post-school education, 61 per cent backed apprenticeship places allowing young people to 'earn why they learn'. Half said grants or bursaries for low-income students to help cover the cost of living, while only a quarter (26 per cent) said funding all first-time undergraduate tuition fees. 'Commitment to free tuition will not change' A Universities Scotland spokesman said: 'For far too long Scotland's conversation about university funding has been in a binary loop of free versus fees. It's time to move beyond that and get into a different kind of conversation. 'This survey suggests that conversation is already happening amongst the public. It is a conversation that needs to start in a meaningful way amongst our political leaders too.' Miles Briggs, the Scottish Tory shadow education secretary, said: 'We will continue to engage with Universities Scotland to develop policies for the benefit of young people across Scotland. The SNP must do the same and consider options to fix the financial crisis across the university sector.' But a Scottish government spokesman said: 'The Scottish Government's commitment to free tuition will not change. Access to higher education should be based on the ability to learn – not the ability to pay. 'The commitment also ensures that Scottish students do not accrue additional tuition fee loan debt incurred by their peers in the rest of the UK.'
