19/06/2020
Curtin Student Guild has condemned the Federal Government’s plan to double the fees of domestic students studying arts, humanities, social sciences and communications who enroll in courses from 2021.
“The Government is stripping choice and diversity from our education system,” said Hana Arai, President of the Curtin Student Guild.
Ms Arai said that the Government was not increasing funding to the higher education sector but robbing some groups of students of funding and diverting it to other areas.
“The Government is shifting the funding burden onto certain groups of students and deciding that some people’s education is more important than others.”
Ms Arai said that the plan would disadvantage low SES students.
“This decision is inequitable because students who can afford it will have choice while those who are disadvantaged will be forced into career paths dictated to them by the Government,” she said.
Ms Arai said that students studying courses that were not valued by the Government would be penalised by tens of thousands of dollars.
“The Government is saying the arts is not of value to our economy and our society and therefore people choosing to study those courses will be punished.
“There is no basis for this rationale – the arts are integral to strong economies and encourage societies to be culturally and intellectually robust and diverse,” she said.
Contact
Hana Arai
Curtin Student Guild President
president@guild.curtin.edu.au
(08) 9266 2900