Last December 20, the University Student Government (USG) Office of the Executive Treasurer (OTREAS) conducted a focus group discussion (FGD) regarding the tuition fee increase. The discussion was led by Executive Treasurer Brian Chen and was attended by students from different colleges.
On the FGD
The students agreed that the tuition fee increase will be justifiable only when it will be manifested in the improvement of facilities and quality of teaching of the professors.
To better inform the student body regarding the reason behind the increase, the students suggested some alternatives that can be done such as sharing posts on social media, providing a clear breakdown of the tuition fee, and creating brochures to be circulated within campus, among others.
The tuition fee increase is not the only proposal of the University to combat the effects of the lean years and K to 12 program. Others that have already been implemented include the offering of Senior High School and the ConnectED program.
A further explanation of the effects of the lean years can be found here.
Discussions in the MSCSF
As of press time, the OTREAS is drafting its proposal which will be submitted to the Multi-Sectoral Committee on Student Fees (MSCSF) on January 4, 2017. The MSCSF is a consultative body composed of representatives from the administration, student body, parents’ organization, and faculty and employee associations.
The committee is responsible for deliberating and consolidating the proposals of the representatives, and submitting it to the Board of Trustees (BOT) thereafter. The BOT will then ultimately decide the percentage increase for the tuition fee.
Currently, the University charges the following amounts per unit: P3130 for the College of Computer Studies, P2576 for the College of Education, P2999 for the College of Engineering, P2864 for the College of Science, and P2758 for the College of Liberal Arts, College of Business, and School of Economics.
For instance, a CLA student who will take HUMAART, a three-unit course, will have to pay P8274. If the student were to take 18 units, that will total to around P49,644. This amount does not include other fees yet such as student fees, miscellaneous fees, development fees, special fees, laboratory fees, and others.
A breakdown of the tuition fee can be found here.
By January 6 and 18, 2017, the MSCSF will be conducting more meetings to discuss the proposals of the representatives. Chen explains that if there is still no agreement by the committee by January 18, discussions on the tuition fee increase will continue until a suitable increase is agreed upon.
