Edinburgh’s “Fixed Fees” initiative is a good move… now all eyes on Scottish referendum and whether it re-introduces PSW.

International students at Edinburgh are to benefit from a new system of fixed annual fees that will last for the duration of their degree.

The changes, which will come into effect from 1 August 2014, will cover all full time undergraduate and taught postgraduate programmes lasting more than one year.

Unlike many other universities, tuition fees will not rise each year in line with inflation. The new system means that international students will be aware of the exact cost of fees during their time at Edinburgh.

EUSA is delighted that the University have taken this step. It will make a positive impact on international students and make it easier for them to budget for their time at Edinburgh.

Hugh Murdoch, President, EUSA

Benefit for students

The new arrangements are the result of University staff working in collaboration with colleagues from the University Students’ Association, EUSA.

The changes will not affect those students already undertaking a taught degree programme at the University.

One of the barriers for international students who are considering studying in the UK is the uncertainty of the total fees that they will be charged. This development will undoubtedly help students, and their parents, better plan for their studies.

Michelle Embury, Associate Director of University Guidance, Collingwood School, W Vancouver, Canada

Tuition fees for international students who started their degree programme before 1 August 2014 remain subject to annual revision.

The announcement reaffirms Edinburgh’s commitment to attracting the best students from a range of backgrounds around the world.

The above information is taken from the University’s website (see link).

This is a fantastic decision on part of the University and customer-friendly (assuming that the students are indeed customers). The impediments for the attractiveness of Scottish offerings is the UK’s withdrawal of the PSW. Scottish institutions tend to remind that it was Scotland that first introduced the FRESH TALENT INITIATIVE and what thereafter UK introduced as POST STUDY WORK was only to ape this for the full UK. Now UK has withdrawn it and the Scottish scheme too remains closed. Scotland as such is eyeing the September referendum which will decide if Scotland continues to remain a part of UK or asserts is full independence. Politicians have also voiced that if Scotland does become independent, it will re-introduce PSW. If that happens, UK will have no option but to also re-introduce PSW and end all this talk of it being “unwelcoming to international students”. Let’s see what unfolds as there are quite a few “if” there.

ADDITIONAL NOTE (13/02/2014) :  The above blog may have given an impression that Edinburgh is the first institution to have fixed-fees. This is not true and there are a few institutions in UK including in Scotland who already have fixed-fees. However for an institution such as Edinburgh to follow this, it will encourage all the others to also make fixed-fees as the norm in the interest of students.