Lowering college tuition

Students from the Korean Federation of University Students and citizens held a candlelight vigil for the ninth day Tuesday in front of KT headquarters in downtown Seoul to demand halving college tuition, a pledge made by President Lee Myung-bak in his 2007 presidential election campaign. The student councils of four universities in Seoul also threatened to go on a joint strike in the hope of their voices being heard. Four hundred students, parents and activists participated in the rally. Trying to force action on tuition via concerted action or strike is simply absurd, however.

University tuition rates are high because funding at private universities is weak, forcing them to rely on tuition. Certain schools save anything left over after using tuition income as reserves, which comprise donations and investment returns to be used later for building research programs and facilities. Investment is necessary to boost competitiveness but through the use of tuition. One university set aside 54.5 billion won (50.46 million U.S. dollars), or 22 percent of its tuition revenue as reserves, which only justifies the argument that tuition rates can be lowered by 22 percent.

The unconditional halving of tuition will only help universities that have been negligent in improving educational conditions. Certain schools admit students regardless of high school records and college entrance exam scores in return for money. Budgetary support for these colleges is the same as using an artificial respirator to keep alive a dying patient. Halving tuition will only raise Korea`s university entrance rate, which is the world`s highest. Nearly 80 percent of high school graduates go to college and 3 million students attend 345 universities in the country. This means a higher jobless rate for university graduates.

The priority is for universities to lower their tuition themselves. The University of Suwon has frozen tuition for three years and used its reserves to create a scholarship fund worth 25 billion won (23 million dollars). The university has 107 faculty members, half that of similar-size universities. The university`s president Lee In-soo said, “We have outstanding professors and the devotion of administrative faculty. This has helped our school raise efficiency.” This offers a lesson to other universities.

An education plan spans 100 years. Lawmakers should keep this in mind and refrain from exploiting the tuition debate to win votes in next year’s presidential and general elections. Unconditional halving of tuition means using public funds to support affluent children that otherwise should have been spent on students from low-income families. More state money will be spent than on the free school lunch program. Who will take responsibility for the side effects of the massive fiscal injection? The R&D budget will be cut and hamper national efforts to foster universities into global leaders.

Instead of joining the candlelight vigil, politicians should spend more time designing plans so that the competitiveness of Korea’s university education is enhanced and that more needy students benefit.