University of Glasgow Principal, Professor Anton Muscatelli, has called for any introduction of up-front tuition fees to be ruled out of the debate on university funding.

The Principal made his plea at a Scottish Conservative Party Higher Education Conference in Edinburgh.

He said that up-front tuition fees “should not be on anyone’s agenda” and added that current levels of funding for Scottish universities have kept them globally competitive.

Professor Muscatelli highlighted the fact that a 100% publically funded University system was seen as central to Scottish society.

He added: “Our strong national commitment to fair access in Higher Education means that it is essential to preserve that access. This means that up-front tuition fees should not be considered as a funding solution.

“Current funding of higher education in Scotland has maintained our global competitiveness but that is not necessarily sustainable in the longer term.”

He went on to say that a graduate contribution model is the fairest way of meeting any future funding gaps  which will face universities and that a well designed system could be designed so as not to deter access to higher education to all.

He said: “A graduate contribution model, if properly designed, could be a very progressive model, in which those who earn more during their lifetime pay back more to society in order to fund higher education.”

Professor Muscatelli also used the speech to highlight the importance of research excellence to Scotland, linking the fact that many research-intensive universities can also boast very high student satisfaction rates - often among the best in the country. He pointed out that some see universities placing too much emphasis on their research when the majority of their public funding is in respect of their teaching.

He argued that one could strengthen the link between research excellence and student experience rates by introducing greater competition between universities for student places within the Scottish Higher Education system.

Professor Muscatelli pointed out that one way to redress the balance would be to allow for a limited degree of mobility between universities between the first and second years of study, which would encourage universities to provide the best possible experience for their students and value for money for the public funding which the sector receives. At a time of fiscal stringency this would ensure greater accountability of universities and a greater focus on the quality of teaching and the student experience.

His final point was that there is strong evidence that those University systems - like the UK and the US - which combine competition with strong institutional autonomy produces the best outcomes in terms of the largest number of world-class Universities. Professor Muscatelli believes a move towards greater competition in teaching, even whilst the public finances are under pressure, would provide impetus to Scotland’s ambition to maintain a number of world-class Universities.

First published: 21 September 2010

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