Harris clashes with college on extra fee
HIGHER Education Minister Simon Harris is taking on a university over fees it charges for repeat exams.
The minister has contacted the president of NUI Galway over the €295 extra charge that other colleges have dropped. Sinn Féin TD Mairéad Farrell raised the issue in the Dáil last week, saying it puts a strain on students and creates an unequal playing field.
Law student Imogen O’Flaherty-Falconer said NUIG does not seem to understand people do not have €295 of disposable income. She tried to have the exam fee waived in September and was told by an NUIG financial adviser to take out a loan to cover it.
The fee means people from lower-income backgrounds are under more pressure when taking exams, she said.
Responding to Ms Farrell in the Dáil, Minister Harris said: ‘The short answer is that I will contact NUI Galway. Autonomy cannot be used as a fig leaf for inflexibility. I take the point she makes.’ Mr Harris’s spokesperson said he had engaged with the NUIG president – Ciarán Ó hOgartaigh – and that his officials were following up on his comments in the Dáil.
Ms Farrell told the Irish Daily Mail : ‘It was highlighted to me in summer that students in NUIG were being asked to pay €295 for repeat exams. There was huge uncertainty last year, and a huge amount of financial strain, and strain on mental health. There was a campaign organised by the NUIG Students’ Union to try to get this repeat exam fee wiped... UCC, Trinity, and I think UCD had all gotten rid of it.’
NUIG said around one in ten students resit exams and that waivers are available for those most in need. It added that the fee covers the cost of repeats to the university.