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I guess it depends on exactly what the fees are. Tim Send a noteboard - 13/05/2010 11:06:37 AM
But if the comparatively few people from working-class backgrounds who want to go to university can't afford do so, things will never get any better.

Double or triple tuition fees, and they'd still be on a level with the Dutch ones, less than half of the British ones and nothing compared to American ones. Extend the scholarships to keep the price the same for those who need it, if need be. But really, this "higher education needs to be free" thing is nonsense. If the working class people don't get to university, it really isn't because of the money, it's because our secondary education system evidently isn't good enough at getting the deserving among those people in the university-aimed tracks, because somehow they are discouraged from university studies. When I'm discussing topics like this, I suddenly find myself longing for that American dream concept that I otherwise tend to be rather sceptical about.


If you go the American way and charge €20,000, but then offer €20,000 scholarships to the poor, you'll still get mostly rich people because the poor will see the price tag and get scared. And they'll be less likely to apply because they know they can't be assured of getting a scholarship, even if they are clever.

On the other hand, if you charge €750 and offer €750 scholarships to the poor, it might work a bit better.

That said, I do sometimes resent some of the 18-year-olds on my course who are getting their degree for free while I pay through the nose. Not because I don't think tuition should be free, nor because I don't think it's fair enough to charge people for a second degree, but because a lot of them take it for granted and piss around instead of doing work. We accelerated students often say to each other "Pah, you can tell who's getting their degree for free..." Using taxpayers' money to skip lectures and sit mute and unprepated in tutorials is not OK in my book.

Some figures for you to explain the problem: most university studies in Flanders (not sure about Walloon data) have pass rates of about 50% in the first year; most of the 50% who fail will eventually get their degree with one or more years delay, but a significant amount doesn't. Of course, high failure rates in the first year is, one might argue, a necessity in a country where universities accept every student who wishes to enroll provided he has a secondary school certificate (which is one reason why I advocate entrance exams like our medicine schools have, the main reason why the pass rate is so much higher there), but it's still an enormous waste of taxpayer money.


I think guaranteed entry to anyone who finishes school, rather than free tuition, is the source of your problem :P. That way people drift into university, rather than setting their heart on getting there and working for it. Then they suddenly discover they don't have to be there as they did with school, and they go nuts.

Do universities not get to set their own standards, and make entry conditional on getting certain grades? Damn bleeding-heart liberal Europeans :P. (New Zealand is like that too)

How did this go from a post about Estonia to a post about me giving my opinion on a myriad of Belgian issues? :P


I'm in a mood for discussing politics at the moment. You can probably guess why. Also, in addition to the obvious reason, I have a Public Law exam coming up.
Vigilantibus non dormientibus jura subveniunt.

—Nous disons en allemand : le guerre, le mort, le lune, alors que 'soleil' et 'amour' sont du sexe féminin : la soleil, la amour. La vie est neutre.

—La vie ? Neutre ? C'est très joli, et surtout très logique.
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So the list of countries using the euro will grow longer, not shorter... Estonia to join in 2011 Legolas - 12/05/2010 10:51:37 PM 1301 Views
Sounds like a winner Isaac - 12/05/2010 11:07:38 PM 908 Views
You Americans should like Estonia - they're rather neoliberal that way. Legolas - 12/05/2010 11:18:30 PM 1096 Views
Apparently we do Isaac - 13/05/2010 05:34:41 PM 934 Views
I liked the remark one Estonian bankofficial made Bramhodoulos - 12/05/2010 11:38:26 PM 874 Views
Re: I liked the remark one Estonian bankofficial made BlackAdder - 12/05/2010 11:42:37 PM 919 Views
I stand corrected than Bramhodoulos - 12/05/2010 11:45:33 PM 818 Views
I do sometimes wish more Belgians would understand that. Legolas - 12/05/2010 11:52:41 PM 789 Views
Re: I do sometimes wish more Belgians would understand that. BlackAdder - 13/05/2010 12:05:03 AM 815 Views
That would be more convincing if universities promoted more social mobility. Legolas - 13/05/2010 12:11:37 AM 922 Views
Social attitudes take a very long time to change. Tim - 13/05/2010 12:28:09 AM 940 Views
We have need-based scholarships. We could extend them. Legolas - 13/05/2010 12:38:31 AM 831 Views
I guess it depends on exactly what the fees are. Tim - 13/05/2010 11:06:37 AM 930 Views
They're low. Too low. Legolas - 13/05/2010 12:12:29 PM 942 Views
American universities do have entrance exams. Sort of. Macharius - 13/05/2010 02:17:13 PM 947 Views
Those are really too lame to count. Legolas - 13/05/2010 02:21:23 PM 984 Views
Re: Those are really too lame to count. Macharius - 13/05/2010 05:04:25 PM 987 Views
typically the more specialized programs require that LadyLorraine - 13/05/2010 05:53:20 PM 904 Views
Re: Those are really too lame to count. BlackAdder - 13/05/2010 07:32:19 PM 991 Views
Like I indicated, I'm not suggesting it in the American system. Legolas - 13/05/2010 07:53:15 PM 999 Views
meh. Most degrees are useless anyway. AgentOrange - 13/05/2010 01:14:54 AM 822 Views
That could be fixed if there weren't such stigma attached to vocational schools. Ghavrel - 13/05/2010 02:18:40 AM 851 Views
Re: That would be more convincing if universities promoted more social mobility. BlackAdder - 13/05/2010 08:08:16 PM 911 Views
Buying a senator helps. Vodalus - 14/05/2010 02:33:44 AM 852 Views
Re: That would be more convincing if universities promoted more social mobility. Legolas - 14/05/2010 11:48:22 AM 900 Views
Is it as late as university? Or is it a good bit earlier? EDIT: Nevermind. Answered elsewhere. Vodalus - 14/05/2010 05:36:50 PM 1021 Views
Oh, it's a lot earlier. Legolas - 14/05/2010 06:03:51 PM 954 Views
Re: Is it as late as university? Or is it a good bit earlier? EDIT: Nevermind. Answered elsewhere. BlackAdder - 14/05/2010 07:57:32 PM 858 Views
Re: That would be more convincing if universities promoted more social mobility. BlackAdder - 14/05/2010 08:02:58 PM 955 Views
Come on. jh - 13/05/2010 10:13:29 AM 978 Views
naw most of them are getting degrees in liberal arts because they like to read book more then work *NM* random thoughts - 13/05/2010 02:01:59 PM 359 Views
You ever been to Estonia? If not, stop speaking. *NM* Lordling - 13/05/2010 10:29:17 AM 487 Views
your funny *NM* random thoughts - 13/05/2010 02:01:06 PM 366 Views
Surely Sweden can say, or could have said, that they wouldn't join till they damn well felt like it? Tim - 12/05/2010 11:39:57 PM 850 Views
Apparently Denmark only got the opt-out after rejecting the Maastricht treaty. Legolas - 12/05/2010 11:47:00 PM 885 Views
Good point: it seems to me no-one cares about being Belgian, only Flemish or Walloon . Tim - 12/05/2010 11:51:27 PM 772 Views
It's slightly more subtle than that. Legolas - 13/05/2010 12:00:29 AM 928 Views
What do you think about this suggestion? Tim - 13/05/2010 12:09:02 AM 907 Views
That has been suggested by many, yeah. Legolas - 13/05/2010 12:28:24 AM 923 Views
But before you make a decision like that... Bramhodoulos - 13/05/2010 08:36:07 AM 907 Views
They can export him to another country which needs a king. Wouldn't be the first time. Tim - 13/05/2010 10:57:59 AM 848 Views
We have a Flemish government, though. Legolas - 13/05/2010 12:22:57 PM 954 Views
Hmm, a pan-European entity getting too big and splitting into Eastern and Western administrations... Tim - 13/05/2010 11:09:51 AM 833 Views
That wasn't entirely what I meant. Legolas - 13/05/2010 12:15:14 PM 861 Views
There is one answer to most of those questions Bramhodoulos - 12/05/2010 11:49:46 PM 789 Views
I love that the rest of you have the euro. Tim - 12/05/2010 11:53:10 PM 793 Views
*waits for the Pound to drop and the UK begging for the euro* *NM* Bramhodoulos - 12/05/2010 11:56:25 PM 434 Views
That would be the worst time to do it. Tim - 13/05/2010 12:05:32 AM 872 Views
Well... that is true. But your exports would be really high. Ghavrel - 13/05/2010 12:11:50 AM 824 Views
Also the best time. snoopcester - 13/05/2010 12:11:53 AM 872 Views
I WIN *NM* Ghavrel - 13/05/2010 12:12:51 AM 383 Views
Bah *NM* snoopcester - 13/05/2010 12:18:48 AM 329 Views
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times... *NM* Tim - 13/05/2010 12:19:32 AM 318 Views
I think on the balance, that's probably better than the opposite, but yeah, neither is ideal. *NM* Legolas - 13/05/2010 12:14:23 AM 406 Views
There is a small problem with that... jh - 13/05/2010 10:21:44 AM 790 Views
I found the wikipedia article. Tim - 13/05/2010 10:53:00 AM 984 Views
WOW WHEN DID THE UK CHANGE THEIR COINS Ghavrel - 13/05/2010 12:10:41 AM 869 Views
2008, apparently. Though I don't think we actually saw them until 2009. Tim - 13/05/2010 12:17:46 AM 904 Views
Oh. Okay. I guess the black is just a reflective thing they're doing for the photo. Ghavrel - 13/05/2010 12:37:24 AM 816 Views
I used to use a ten-pound note to inhale...things. Tom - 13/05/2010 05:54:09 AM 843 Views
You have a thing for Charles Darwin? Tim - 13/05/2010 10:45:14 AM 780 Views
From "Mean Mr. Mustard" - "keeps a ten-bob note up his nose...such a mean old man..." Tom - 13/05/2010 02:36:34 PM 822 Views
In that case I'm going to have to disappoint you. Tim - 13/05/2010 02:54:04 PM 949 Views
I knew that, but I had limited options. Tom - 13/05/2010 03:15:07 PM 924 Views
You could try a €500 note. Tim - 13/05/2010 03:18:11 PM 827 Views
In other news, the sky is blue. Legolas - 13/05/2010 03:33:25 PM 845 Views
I seem to remember reading something in 2002 about Germans paying their monthly rent in cash. Tim - 13/05/2010 03:43:35 PM 939 Views
Hm. Possible. Legolas - 13/05/2010 03:50:31 PM 810 Views
Re: In other news, the sky is blue. BlackAdder - 13/05/2010 07:45:06 PM 915 Views
Sheesh...I was just using, not dealing. Tom - 13/05/2010 03:47:05 PM 825 Views
The thrill of decadence? *NM* Tim - 13/05/2010 03:51:21 PM 358 Views
Ooh...I'm sure THAT will shore up the eurozone... *laughs* Tom - 13/05/2010 05:51:12 AM 871 Views
Agreed Balwer - 13/05/2010 12:20:12 PM 850 Views
Nobody said it would. Legolas - 13/05/2010 12:34:27 PM 854 Views
You know what will save the eurozone ? AgentOrange - 13/05/2010 04:55:06 PM 846 Views
You're a little ray of sunshine, aren't you? *NM* Legolas - 13/05/2010 05:10:48 PM 354 Views
Hey man, I don't want Europe to be the next Japan AgentOrange - 13/05/2010 05:42:26 PM 848 Views
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