Financing of higher education is main priority for ESU in 2011

ESU will work to reverse the severe cuts in higher education budgets across Europe.

ESU Chairperson Bert Vandenkendelaere said: “The first ten years of this century have seen the amount of funding per student decrease in many countries, often for the first time in decades.
“This decrease has often been replaced by the introduction or increase of tuition fees. These fees have not filled the funding gap, but they have made it more difficult for people to participate in and complete higher education.”

At ESU’s 59th Board Meeting, the national unions of students in Europe adopted ESU’s plan of work for 2011. The plan outlines financing as well as other priorities, such as working on indicators for the social dimension of higher education, developing a student quality concept  for higher education, and promoting a European student mobility treaty.

Already in October, ESU started a project called “Financing the Students’ Future”. One of the project aims is to compare European funding systems in order to share best practices.

Read the whole plan of work for 2011 here. For more information, contact ESU Chairperson Bert Vandenkendelare on bert@esu-online.org.