Student says changes were wrong and disappointing

HUMANITIES and law uni students will have to pay up to significantly more for their courses under a controversial federal government higher education fee overhaul set to pass the Senate

• Overhaul to uni fees could harm the NT, warns union

TERRITORY law and humanities uni students will have to pay up to 113 per cent more for their courses under a controversial federal government higher education fee overhaul set to pass the Senate.

MORE POLITICAL NEWS

Budget measures expected to create more than 5000 NT jobs

EXPLAINER: What the Federal Budget means for Territorians

Editorial: Federal Budget a big win for the Territory

The reforms will mean the cost of subjects like maths and science will be slashed, while the price of law and humanities degrees will skyrocket by up to 113 per cent.

The government says the new structure will provide incentives for students to choose courses which are “more job-relevant”.

The legislation is set to pass parliament in time for the 2021 academic year after minor party Centre Alliance pledged its support for it yesterday.

A Charles Darwin University student studying linguistics, who asked not to be named, said the proposed changes were “dangerous” and “unequal”.

“Valuing a certain kind of knowledge and not necessarily a diverse kind of knowledge – that’s a really dangerous thing to do,” she said.

LIMITED TIME: New NT News subscription offer: $1 a week for the first 12 weeks

The student said she originally studied nursing, which is one of the courses that prices are being slashed for, but did not enjoy the industry.

“I think it’s wrong not to support these kinds of humanities, not to support empowering people and pathways to self-determination.”

Follow @MsSarahMatthews