UK University Students Demand For Refund As Online Learning Continues

KUALA LUMPUR, 28.6.2021 – Universities are planning to combine in-person and online lectures this autumn, prompting students to seek a refund for part of the fees that they were charged per year. 

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, universities have shifted to online learning to prevent the virus from spreading. The exact blend of physical and online lectures will be determined by the vaccination of young people and the rules of social distancing. 

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However, this execution raised much dissatisfaction among students who have been learning online for nearly three years. They have been paying full costs for online lectures that range from YouTube tutorials to Zoom lectures, which were deemed unpractical for students belonging to certain majors that require in-person learning. 

Rhian Shilabeer, politics student from the University of Kent was among the students affected by the universities’ new implementation.  

“It’s just not fair to charge £9,250 a year for YouTube tutorials,” she commented. 

Just like how students were left in the dark regarding the execution of their lectures, university authorities were frustrated by the government’s slow response towards confirming plans for the autumn intake. For instance, campus social distancing guidance is yet to be announced. This in turn affects the university’s final say on whether students can go back to campus, or continue with online and blended learning. 

Data from The Observer showed that 17 universities were prepared for different scenarios, such as observing the one-metre social distancing rule during in-person lectures. This, however, would potentially reduce the capacity of lecture halls and rooms by a quarter. Eventually, universities might have to fall back to online learning from the lack of space caused by social distancing. 

The vice-chancellor of York University, Charlie Jeffrey said: “The biggest thing is vaccination. That’s a precondition for universities operating as close to normal as we would wish them to. I’d like the government to see that as a priority, given the disruption university students have had to face. We’ve too often been an afterthought for the government, and students have felt that and are not happy about it.” 

Hence, vice-chancellors from the Russell Group of research-intensive universities are prompting the government to establish temporary vaccination centres on university grounds when autumn term begins. They hope this move can prevent the same outbreak last year from happening. The previous outbreak had forced thousands of students into isolating themselves in small residence rooms. This led some of them to isolation fatigue, a situation in which students are anxious, depressed, or exhausted from staying in quarantine for too long. 

The general secretary of London School of Economics’ student union, David Gordon predicted that requests for refunds would increase if the issue goes on for another year. 

Gordon says, “I think students will put up with a bit of online learning.” 

“But if students are barred from campuses, not getting in-person teaching or building connections with each other or faculty you could see an increase in calls for compensation,” he added. 

With vaccines becoming increasingly available worldwide, there are high hopes that university students will be able to experience their campus life as usual again. 

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