Universities minister says dissatisfied students should seek refunds
Universities Minister Michelle Donelan has encouraged students to seek tuition refunds if they are unsatisfied.
Ms Donelan said students should ‘absolutely’ ask for a refund, adding: ‘They are consumers, at the end of the day. They pay a substantial sum of money which is an investment in their own lives. They deserve that right of appeal.
Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, Ms Donelan said there had been “tens of thousands” of refunds given to students by the Office of the Independent Adjudicator during the pandemic.
She also criticized universities for not returning to face-to-face learning, high vice-chancellor salaries and “mickey mouse” courses.
Today is a great day for quality in higher education. For the first time, we are setting minimum standards on dropout rates and progression to graduate jobs – so that every student gets a fair deal.https://t.co/tzJjR5XHkc
— Michelle Donelan MP (@michelledonelan) January 20, 2022
“I had to really say to the vice-chancellors, you have to make sure you keep what you promised the students because, as the Prime Minister pointed out, we have to learn to live with this virus now.
“We have to go back to life before the pandemic. Risk assessments cannot be used as an excuse for not organizing face-to-face teaching. Students have shown the way in the [vaccination] Statistics.”
Ms Donelan said she would not defend some vice-chancellor’s salaries, which she called ‘tearful and staggering’, and said drop-out rates for some courses were as high as 40%.
“Universities try to lure students to the front door and say it’s social mobility. In fact, it doesn’t help anyone,” she said.
