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Hi Everyone,
On the 5th June, we are going to meet Mr Bill Rammell MP, Minister for Higher Education for a meeting to discuss the tuition fees issue for graduate medical students.
From this September, no graduate studying medicine will be eligible for a student loan to cover their tuition fees and will have to pay £3000 per year themselves up front.
We are trying to get this changed and will let you know how the meeting goes.
To find out more, please go to:
http://www.medschoolsonline.co.uk/index.php?pageid=97
If you have any questions, please let us know.
Thanks,
Medschools Online
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Today, Bill Rammell contacted the BMA to say that he would have to postpone the meeting on the 5th June. He has offered us the 21st June instead, and we will let you know as soon as we know whether we can make this date. It may not be possible due to exam/work committments etc, but we will do our utmost to attend.
We will post any future progress on this forum.
Thanks,
Medschools Online
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On the 21st June 2006, we attended a meeting with Mr Bill Rammell MP, Minister for Higher Education. Present at the meeting were Jeremy Durston and Hannah Brotherstone from Medschools Online, Leo Smith (MSC rep for Southampton) and Kirsty Lloyd, Chair of the BMA Medical Students Committee (MSC).
The graduate fees issue was discussed and Mr Rammell has agreed to a second meeting to discuss this and other funding issues further. This second meeting should take place during July.
Whilst he hasn't made any committment to making graduate medical students eligible for student loans to cover their tuition fees, the fact that he proposed a follow up meeting so soon is very encouraging.
We will of course keep you all updated regarding any future developments - please check our forum regularly, and feel free to post questions!
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Did you manage to meet with Bill Rammell, and if so is there any hope at all for a fees loan for graduates starting in 6 weeks' time?!
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Hi Everyone,
Leo Smith, Southampton's excellent MSC rep attended a second meeting with Bill Rammell a few weeks ago. Unfortunately, neither Hannah nor I (from Medschools Online) were able to attend as we were both in Ghana on an ophthalmology elective. However, Leo has given me the following information about what happened. I'm afraid the news isn't good.
Bill Rammell has personally decided that graduates studying medicine will NOT be eligible for loans to cover their tuition fees. Therefore those on 4-year courses will have to pay £3000 up front in their first year and those on 5-year courses will have to pay £3000 up front for the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th years of the course.
He justified this with the following arguments:
1) he stated that the socio-economic demographics of those applying to study medicine as a second degree hadn't changed for 2006 (i.e. those from poorer background were not being put off from applying to study medicine despite the increase in tuition fees). We argued that most applicants didn't know that they would not be eligible for student loans when they applied, therefore the statistics are unreliable. In addition, medicine is already dominated by those from the wealthiest backgrounds and this policy does nothing to help reverse this trend.
2) He also indicated that there was sufficient private finance available from commercial banks so graduate students should borrow this money from the private sector. We think that this money is insufficient for most people to live off, particuarly once they have paid their fees.
3) He says the cost of providing student loans is still considerable (apparently they make a loss), so priority is given to those who haven't yet had the chance to experience higher education. We suggested that they increase the interest rate for graduate medical students so that the government doesn't lose money. Apparently this would require a legislative change and would never get on to the agenda in parliament, so is unviable.
Bill Rammell has offered a permanent position on the Professions Group, which he chairs, which will monitor the impact of tuition fees on access to the medical profession. Either one of us or a BMA MSC rep will sit on this committee.
We have also requested the UCAS statistics that he used to argue that the demographics of medical students haven't changed. We will then analyse them to see if what he says is true.
We are also planning on contacting some of the main high street banks to see whether they would be prepared to increase the amount they will lend to graduate medical students.
We are also raising this issue with Sarah Teather (Lib Dem, Education) and Boris Johnson (Conservative, Higher Education)
Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but on the plus side the petition has enabled us to get two face to face meetings with the minister for higher education, so even on that level, making your voices heard has had some impact, even if it is just that the polititians sit up and take notice that we are here and our views should be taken seriously.
If you have any questions about any of the above, please post them here.
Thanks,
Medschools Online
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