Glasgow bucks the trend as the first ‘ancient’ not to charge fees of £9,000

GLASGOW University has become the first of Scotland’s so-called “ancient” institutions not to charge fees at the maximum of £9,000 a year for students from England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Glasgow will charge students from the rest of the UK £6,750 a year for their degrees, with the exception of those studying medicine, dentistry and veterinary medicine who will be charged £9,000.

It becomes the first of Scotland’s ancient universities not to charge £9,000 a year, but at £26,000 the cost of a degree will be roughly in line with those at Aberdeen and Dundee.

Glasgow University said all rest of UK (RUK) students entering first year would be awarded a bursary or fee waiver of £1,000.

Both Aberdeen and Dundee universities have said they will charge £9,000 a year up to a maximum of £27,000, while Edinburgh and St Andrews will charge £36,000 for a four-year course.

Scottish students and those from elsewhere in the EU are exempt from the fees.

Professor Anton Muscatelli, principal and vice-chancellor of Glasgow University, said: “We greatly value the contribution, both academic and social, that students from the rest of the United Kingdom make to our campus and are committed to doing all that we can to ensure that they continue to be a welcome part of our university.

“We considered all of our options and have been able to limit the fees for undergraduate students to £6,750, with those studying degrees in medicine, dentistry and veterinary medicine charged £9,000 a year.

“We have also been able to be innovative and imaginative in coming up with a package of measures which, we hope, will make the choice of studying at the University of Glasgow even more appealing.”

Stuart Ritchie, president of Glasgow University Students’ Representative Council, said: “GUSRC welcome the university’s decision of a fee level below £9,000 per year, but are fully aware that the total cost of a University of Glasgow degree will be £27,000 excluding bursaries.

“We now ask the university to provide further details of how this cost will be subsidised, particularly for those from low- income households.

“We worked constructively to lobby the university to ensure that a commitment would be made to keep the University of Glasgow open and inclusive. Whilst the initiatives mentioned in today’s announcement take a step towards this, further information is needed to prove that the finance packages are not merely tokenistic and that the desire to widen access remains a long-term vision for the university.”

Meanwhile, the University of West Scotland (UWS) said it would charge students £7,250 a year for their degrees.

In a statement, the university said: “In setting its RUK fees the university has aimed for equity.

“The RUK-fee level is restricted to the amount of tuition income UWS would receive for Scottish students studying on the same programmes.”

Robin Parker, president of the National Union of Students in Scotland, said: “The decision of UWS to set the price of its degrees at £29,000 is truly astounding.

“Only Edinburgh and St Andrews have set more expensive fees, making UWS among the top three most expensive institutions in the whole of the UK. This is a huge mistake which could tarnish the reputation not just of UWS but also of Scotland as a whole.”