Dmitry Medvedev: Dear friends, first of all, I want to thank you for all the comments I receive on my site following my video addresses, the comments on all the different issues of concern to you, the issues that preoccupy us all in the current situation. I read all of these different comments. I not only read them but also plan to respond to them. I have instructed my Executive Office to make a thorough analysis of all these comments and take the relevant steps in cases where necessary. In my upcoming video addresses I will go over some of the most important issues that have come up. We will also respond in writing to a number of the problems raised.
Turning now to the subject I want to address today, I want to say a few words about financial issues related to getting higher education, and propose some solutions to the problems facing students.
Currency rate changes and a whole number of other reasons have created a situation where many students now have a hard time raising the money to pay for their studies. This has never been easy for students, but it is particularly difficult at a time when the country faces financial difficulties. In this context, I have several proposals that I want to put forward now.
My first proposal is to expand and develop the student loan system. We have already drawn up a normative document setting out provisions in accordance with which student loans can be accorded to students who show good results in their studies and display a normal level of knowledge. These low-interest loans are accorded for the duration of the students’ studies and are repaid after graduation. To qualify for these loans, students need to show that they are meeting their course requirements.
Another idea is that I propose that universities and other higher education establishments set their tuition fees without indexing them to changes in the rouble’s exchange rate. Tuition fees should be set in roubles with the figure remaining unchanged over the duration of tuition. I think this would be fairer. Higher education establishments would perhaps make a little less money in this case, but it would make life a bit easier for students, who would no longer have to try to keep up with the exchange rate, constantly carrying out indexation and having to come up with extra money. It would help give students a more stable situation and greater confidence during their studies.
Another issue is that of the large number of higher education establishments currently going through inspections and checks. In our view, not all of these establishments are up to standard and the issue of revoking licenses and accreditation comes up from time to time. I think that we certainly need to keep watch on the quality of education services. At the same time, in the current situation, we also need to give each establishment the chance to get through the current difficulties and show that it can provide a decent level of education. In this context, we will give these establishments the chance to eliminate the problems that inspections and checks have revealed.
Finally, I have one more proposal I’d like to put forward now. The situation today is that some students pay tuition fees for their studies, while others are studying in the same higher education establishments under budget-funded quotas. As an incentive measure, especially for those who cannot afford tuition fees in the current situation, I think it would be right to make it possible to transfer students in such circumstances to the higher education establishment’s budget-funded, state-guaranteed quota of places. Higher education establishments do have this possibility. True, they are not always eager to take this step as it means they lose some money, but I think that in the current situation, we need to make maximum use of these possibilities and give good students, students who show good performance in their studies, the chance to transfer to the budget-funded quota.
These are my proposals. I will soon issue the relevant instructions to the Government and the Ministry of Education and Science. I hope that this will help students to overcome the problems they face today.