Education benefits who accesses it and the whole society. The level of material and spiritual life of a community depends greatly on the level of education of its members. Therefore, education for all must be paid for by society as a whole. Who have had the privilege of completing an advanced training paid by the entire society-something that today not many people can do in our country, we have a moral duty to contribute especially to finance public education, in proportion to the revenue that our training we can get. This approach to the problem funding of tertiary education and university is both fairer and more efficient than the tuition fees to those who are supposed to be able to pay.
Who would be charged fees? In the case of the University of the Republic, 76% of their students need to work, 55% are employed and 21% are unemployed. In addition, one in three students at our institution works thirty hours a week. So do not make sense to charge tuition at least three-quarters of the students. As for the remaining 24%, how many of them could afford it? How many require additional support from their families? In many cases, families have made and continue making a significant effort for their children to study. Can they expand their contribution?
What we should ride inspection tool to find out what students can afford, what does not and how does the situation of each? How many problems would be generated as well? How much money would be raised this way? How many students abandon their studies? The enrollment decline access to tertiary education, with negative consequences not only for those who remain outside it but for the future of the country.
The contribution of professional through the Solidarity Fund to this fund allows thousands of scholarships. If this contribution is proportional to income, be more fair and increase the resources available.
In this way you can move towards what should be a great national goal for any country that aspires to full development: widespread access to advanced training, quality, connected with the work over a lifetime. Otherwise not have made the nations that are often cited as success stories of recent rapid improvement in quality of life for its people. More than seven in ten young people in South Korea or Finland, Ireland and New Zealand, access to higher education; in Uruguay, the figure drops to less than half.
It is conceivable that the position defended here is consistent with the view of the national government. This emerges from the text of the Draft General Law of Education that the Executive has presented to Parliament. Article 19 provides: "The principle of free will ensure compliance with the right to education and the universalization of access and retention of people in the education system." Article 25 makes clear that the project refers to all education levels, from beginners to university, including graduate students.
This is fully consistent with the Constitution, article 71 reads: "Declare social utility of free formal education primary, secondary, tertiary, industrial and artistic and physical education." The big question is if we aim to reduce or expand free public education. Let us hope that an open discussion lead to clear statements and provided with broad support.
Source: Rector's Report No. 49