Aalto University Student Union
2.6.2016
For immediate release

Aalto University has announced its plan to charge a tuition fee of 12 000 – 15 000 Euros from students from outside the EU-EEA area who are admitted in 2017. The sum is much higher than the minimum fee of 1,500 Euros established in the new University Act that was enacted at the beginning of this year.

Aalto University Student Union (AYY) supports free education for everyone. AYY fears that the university’s decision will cause the number of international students to fall sharply and gradually destroy the university’s international degree programmes.

AYY is concerned about the fact that the university’s internationalization goals did not sufficiently influence the size of the tuition fee. The tuition fees for students from outside the EU-EEA area adopted in Sweden in 2011 and in Denmark in 2006 have led to a lack of international students from outside the EU-EEA, reduction in the number of international degree students and a reduction of international programmes. Studies show that students choose their schools based on the university’s ranking, how well known the country is, costs and employment expectations. The 15 000 Euro fee for master programmes becomes questionable in a European context, as many top European universities allow tuition for free or at a minimal fee. The argument that quality correlates with price is not a valid reason for a high tuition fee.

According to its new strategy, the Aalto University seeks to offer international-quality education in multicultural and diverse groups. AYY shares this goal and thinks it is important that every Aalto student learns the intercultural communication skills required in the global job market as part of their studies. International students create networks for both the university and the students, form a significant part of the university’s future doctoral students and make studying a genuinely international experience that broadens horizons. AYY demands that the Aalto University critically evaluate the effects of the fees on the number of applicants and its internationalizing development and do everything it can to preserve its multidisciplinary and diverse internationalism.

Further information:

Milja Asikainen, Chair of the AYY board, milja.asikainen@ayy.fi, +358 50 520 9420
Rosa Väisänen, Board member of AYY, international affairs, rosa.vaisanen@ayy.fi, +358 50 527 2401