Dons tell Higher Education Ministry to drop fee paying students
May 7, 2013, 9:27 pm , The Island
by Dasun Edirisinghe
In the wake of Faculty Board refusing to admit nine fee paying students to the Peradeniya Medical Faculty, lecturers have asked the Higher Education Ministry to stop the controversial move and ensure that students are admitted only in keeping with the University Grants Commission criteria.
Addressing a media conference at the Colombo University Faculty Club, President of the Federation of University Teachers’ Associations, Dr. Nirmal Ranjith Dewasiri said that the government had already planned to admit fee paying students, not only to the Peradeniya University, but also to the Rajarata Medical Faculty.
"The Higher Education Ministry plans to admit nine students to the Rajarata Medical Faculty," he said.
Dr. Dewasiri said that the Higher Education Ministry increased the foreign student admission quota, from 0.5 per cent to 5 per cent, to Sri Lankan universities recently. The higher education ministry planned to admit those students to Sri Lankan universities under the admission of students with foreign qualifications for the undergraduate courses.
According to a letter issued by the UGC it had made these selections based on: (A) children of Sri Lankan diplomatic personnel who are/have been stationed in other countries (B) children of foreign diplomatic personnel working in Sri Lanka (C) Applicants from SAARC countries who seek admission on self-financing basis (D) Sri Lankan applicants not covered under A (E) other foreign applicants not covered under B or C.
Dr. Dewasiri said that according to the UGC, any local or foreign student could be admitted to a state university in Sri Lanka and obtain the degree by paying fees.
The senior academic said that eight students out of ten, sent to the Peradeniya Medical Faculty, have Sri Lankan citizenship. The other two students are of Sri Lankan origin but Canadian and New Zealand citizens.
"This is opening the gate to privatising of state education," Dr. Dewasiri said adding that the annual cost of the degree, also included in the letter, was US$ 12,000 for medicine, US$ 10,000 for Para Medical courses, US$ 8,000 for Engineering courses, US$ 6,000 for Agriculture courses, US$ 5,000 for law, US$ 4,000 for Management and Commerce, US$ 3,000 for humanities and social sciences courses.
Dr. Jayantha Rajaratne of the Peradeniya Medical Faculty said that the university sent a vehicle to the Bandaranaike International Airport to pick up two of the fee paying students.
He said that the university administration did not provide vehicles to go to the airport when an academic went abroad for research work, but sent vehicles for pick up fee paying students from the airport.
Dr. Rajaratne said that the faculty board was not aware of those students until they came for registration.
"Normally, if foreign qualified students sent their applications to the UGC, they must be forwarded to the faculty board for relevant decision," he said adding that they did not even submit their qualifications.
