Students call for 30% Covid discount on tuition fees

University students in England are offering to accept higher interest rates on their loans in exchange.

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• The average male graduate would pay £6,500 more in loan repayments over their lifetime
• Female graduates on average salaries could repay the same amount
• More students from all geographic regions

A group of students unions led by the London School of Economics and the University of Sheffield has written to the education secretary, Gavin Williamson, and the universities minister, Michelle Donelan, to propose that the government funds a 30% tuition fee rebate for all students this year by increasing interest rates by 3% to 6.2%, meaning it would be repaid only by the highest-earning graduates.

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We are asking for immediate financial justice for Covid-affected cohorts of university students.

The pandemic meant most students were barred from their campuses from the end of the autumn term until 17 May, so they missed out on in-person teaching, access to facilities such as libraries, and social and extracurricular activities. Many were frustrated to find themselves unable to access rooms in halls of residence and flats they had already paid for.