OAU Vice chancellor has explained the reasons why school fees has to be increased. He defended the hike in tuition with the fact that the current economic reality could no longer accommodate students paying as little as #7,000 per session. He said fees must be increased to meet international standards.
Vice Chancellor of OAU, Prof Bamitale Omole, who addressed journalists in Ile-Ife town, Osun State, said that the increase in the charges was inevitable if the institution was to attain the international standard.
He said that the current economic reality could no longer accommodate students paying as little as #7,000 per session, hence the regime of a minimum of over #60,000 per fresh student.
He also disclosed that the inflation that has eaten deep into the university’s allocation from the Federal Government has made the charges paid by the students in the last ten years unsustainable, hence the need for the new charges.
In the analysis given by the Vice Chancellor, the Faculty of Arts, Administration, Education, Social Sciences and Law which before now was paying 5,300 Naira for old students would begin to pay 19,700 and fresh students would pay 43,700.
For Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Health Sciences, it has moved from 12,800 to 33,700 while fresh students would be required to pay 57,700. (Channels)
That of Faculty of Science from 7,800 has become 30,700 and fresh students are to pay 54,700.
In all these, the University said that it was however not oblivious of indigent students and the Senate had made adequate provision for it by setting up a Student Education Relief Committee to provide scholarships and grants for this set of students.
This explanation, however, does not seem to go down well with the student leadership. They still want the charges to be reduced.