Fees-free ‘could hurt students’

The fees-free tertiary policy could actually disadvantage the groups it’s supposed to be helping, according to some in the higher education industry.

Data from five universities – Canterbury, AUT, Auckland, Waikato and Victoria of Wellington – showed 76 per cent of European students who were studying a new qualification in 2018 were enrolled under the feesfree scheme, compared to 70 per cent of Ma¯ ori and 66 per cent of Pasifika students.

Although the Ma¯ori and Pasifika cohort studying through the fees-free scheme had better pass rates than their fee-paying peers, they still performed worse, on average, than European students.

In a 2017 Cabinet paper, the Ministry of Education said the fees-free policy, under which Kiwis who had completed less than six months of tertiary education can receive a year of tertiary study paid for by the Government, would help with ‘‘removing barriers to participation’’.

Industry experts said while it was too early to draw conclusions on the success of the fees-free scheme, the Government needed to do more to improve equity.

Eastern Institute of Technology higher education academics Dr Pii-Tuulia Nikula and Professor Kay Morris Matthews, who wrote an article on the zero-fees policy for the New Zealand Annual Review of Education in December, said the fees-free scheme did little to address many of the key barriers that Ma¯ ori and Pasifika students faced in tertiary education.

The fees-free policy could actually disadvantage underrepresented groups as it could lead to tertiary entry criteria being tightened to reduce costs, the researchers said.

‘‘Rather than focusing on the tertiary education level, the Government will need to direct more funding and resources to solve issues such as child poverty and support families in need as well as invest in interventions earlier in the education system.’’

Universities New Zealand’s Te Kahui Amokura committee, which advocates for Ma¯ ori university students and staff, recommended schools and tertiary institutions work more closely to ensure students succeeded in tertiary study.

It also wanted the Government to increase funding and support for university foundation courses and not count those programmes toward students’ year of zero-fees.

However, Professor Kay Weaver, who chairs the University of Waikato’s Scholarships Committee, said the fees-free policy had allowed it to better support students through scholarships.

Before the introduction of the fees-free scheme, its school leaver scholarships had covered recipients’ course fees for the first year.

Now, students could use scholarship money for their secondyear course fees or put it toward accommodation costs.

A Ministry of Education spokeswoman acknowledged there was more work to do to lift Ma¯ ori and Pasifika achievement in tertiary education, but said the fees-free scheme could help remove financial barriers.

‘‘The new Tertiary Education Strategy will have an emphasis on how tertiary education can better support Ma¯ ori and Pacific aspirations.

‘‘Improving the performance of the schooling system for Ma¯ ori learners is vital for increasing participation and achievement at higher levels of study.’’

‘‘The Government will need to direct more funding and resources to . . . support families in need.’’