Open AccessChilean Universities: Not So Tuition-free After All
Author(s) -
Ariane de Gayardon,
Andrés Bernasconi
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
international higher education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2372-4501
pISSN - 1084-0613
DOI - 10.6017/ihe.2016.86.9372
Subject(s) - subsidy , free access , higher education , political science , key (lock) , public administration , economic growth , mathematics education , economics , psychology , law , computer science , computer security , world wide web
In 2011, massive student demonstrations disturbed the proper functioning of universities, with students making free higher education one of their key demands. In 2013, Michele Bachelet, a socialist, was elected president - free higher education being one of her most important electoral promises. This article summarizes the "Short Tuition Free Act" of December 2015 in Chile which is supposed to be the first step toward a free tuition higher education for all. It analyses the current conditions under which students can have access to subsidized tuition and the pitfalls of the current law. It also provides critics of the current approach and questions the possibility of implementing a free for all policy.