Petition
Reduce the fees of undergraduate international students
Category: University Petition
Voting closed
Education President Update:
I presented this petition to the director of student operations
in December, during a meeting where I laid out the key arguments. For financial reasons, a reduction in international fees is currently very unlikely. However, the university is open to exploring options to better support students who are struggling to pay their fees. This discussion is currently ongoing with the university.
46
Votes
Undergraduate Fees for 2024/2025
International Fees: £16,320
Home Fees: £9,250
International students pay 76% more than home students!
- International tuition fees have increased dramatically in the last few years
- The cost of living crisis affects both home and international students.
- Education needs to be accessible: Reduced fees make higher education more accessible to a diverse range of students from around the world, irrespective of their financial backgrounds. This fosters a more inclusive and equitable learning environment.
- Competitiveness: Lower fees attract more international students, boosting the international reputation and competitiveness of educational institutions. This can lead to a positive cycle where higher enrollment drives increased investment in educational quality. International students are much more likely to choose a different university with a lower fee.
Comments
International students already have to Pay more due to flights and they don’t get to go home because of not having the money due to the corse and accommodation being so expensive and it don’t make sense why it’s so expensive
International students already have to Pay more due to flights and they don’t get to go home because of not having the money due to the corse and accommodation being so expensive and it don’t make sense why it’s so expensive
cost of visa (that must be renewed every year meaning a fee), cost of flights, cost of accommodation, cost of living, and cost of fees. We pay so much to just be here and on top of that we pay so much more than everyone for our education, the number of international students in universities helps the ranking of unis.
International students already have to pay for external fees such as Visa, flights, English language tests (UKVI IELTS costs over £200 for people from non-native English speaking countries) etc. Plus, in such current state of economy right now it is not the most convenient situation to pay over £16k for education. It could potentially be a major reason for many to drop out.
According to the British Council website, international undergrad fees vary from £11,400 - £38,000, with the median estimated at around £22,000 p/a. Whilst this is alarmingly high, St Mary's appears to already be charging lower international fees than its peers. Apparently, the main reason given for having higher international fees is to fund research, hence why more prestigious universities charge a premium on international students. St Mary's research leaves much to be desired, so one could argue that the fee premium is not reflected in research output - however there may be other reasons we don't know about. This is clearly a phenomena affecting many other universities and students in this country; whilst it is laudable to make education more affordable and I hope that the burden on students is reduced, I fear that any reduction we can expect to see from St Mary's will bring little relief to those worrying about the cost of study.