Students fee battle not over yet
a data capturer, working in a bookshop and tutoring, so that’s helped me supplement my fees all these years,” she said.
Naidu said she’s not a big party animal, so her entertainment costs are negligible. She invested in a cheap but reliable laptop that’s lasted her for the full four years of her academic career.
She also uses textbooks from the library when she can, packs her own lunch as far as possible, and relies on free wi-fi on campus and at her workplace. Her estimated monthly costs come in at around R2 800.
“I think the #FeesMustFall campaign did have a huge impact. Saving from reduced registration costs has meant that a lot more people have had the opportunity to study at university.
“A university degree isn’t for everyone, but I will always advocate studying further and following your passion,” she said.
Many education experts believe students should consider alternatives to university, especially in light of the number of university graduates without jobs.
Ivor Baatjes, director of the Centre for Integrated Post-School Education and Training at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, said the database of unemployed graduates stands at half a million currently.
He said Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges are vital, and their value is enormous for society’s advancement and growth.
“Yes, it is true that a learner has a better chance of getting a job if they have a university degree than a TVET qualification. But I don’t agree with the misconception that TVET colleges are institutes of a ‘hand’, not ‘head’,” he said.
Baatjes said TVET colleges are crucial to the economy as they produce skilled graduates who are ready to tackle their jobs – able immediately to be employed to fix roads, build schools and houses, and maintain hospitals.
Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges provide on-going education up to national qualifications framework (NQF) level 4, which is the same level of education as a matric.
Martin Somo, 25, is a TVET student doing his fourth level in Safety in Society at the South West Gauteng College in Dube, Soweto.
His course at the college costs R23 000 a year, but government pays 80 percent of that, and he ends up paying about R4 600 a year.
His tuition fees are much cheaper than those of a university student’s, but it’s not the end of his costs, however. His monthly expenses come to about R2 350.
Somo is proud that he’s stuck it out with his course. He said some young people take the view that it’s unglamorous to do physical work in overalls. He added that they associate office work with high-class status.
The 25-year-old is the last born of four brothers and the first member of his family to reach a tertiary level of education.
“Many people don’t go to universities because they can’t afford the fees. At times their academic results don’t allow them to, and this is why they continue their studies at TVET.”
Somo said TVETs shouldn’t be a last resort. “Learners should opt for Further Education and Training (FET) qualifications as a personal preference if they want a career in a skills-oriented industry.”
He said they are important because they equip learners with technical skills that the country is in dire need of.
Somo and his friends received their results this week, and said that the #FeesMustFall campaign hadn’t really affected them in actual savings.
He maintains that, even though TVET students had supported that movement, the overall impact has not touched them. “We don’t have issues with our fees because they are very affordable.
“When we first came to college we applied for bursaries, which government approved, and from the second year the bursary is dependent on our results and how we have performed,” he added.
He plans to study law one day. It will, of course, mean enrolling at a university.
“Hopefully I will, at that point, experience the true success of the #FeesMustFall campaign,” he said. – Additional reporting Ufrieda Ho WITH the registrations at some universities due to begin on Monday, student leaders from last year’s #FeesMustFall campaign are gearing up for sustained action for the ultimate goal of zero-fee university education.
Wits EFF student leader Vuyani Pambo this week said: “We have begun mobilising the students and consulting with various authorities and students from different institutions. We have been promised heaven and earth by government in the past. This year we are not taking any excuses. We are adamant; we want free education.”
It is also understood that Wits students met yesterday in the hope of coming up with new ideas and demands. This includes debt clearance for students.
On the Wits website, the university said it only has room for about 6 200 first-year students and so far it had received at least 70 000 applications.
Wits is encouraging first-year students to make their first payment of R9 340 towards their yearly fees before enrolment.
Student leaders consider one of their biggest victories the fact that those who can’t afford to make this first payment before enrolment can apply for waiver until March 31 – by which time their fees should have been settled in full or an acknowledgement of debt should have been signed. – Noni Mokati