UNAIR NEWS – Responding to tuition fee remission requests due to the pandemic, Universitas Airlangga has made some policy adjustments to support the students. UNAIR Director of Finances, Dr. Ardianto, SE., M.Si., Ak., CMA., CA. stated that several remission request mechanisms are provided.

As of August 26, 2021, Universitas Airlangga has given tuition fee remissions to 8191 students from the total 8312 remission requests.

The remission requests were from students in 16 faculties of UNAIR, including Faculty of Medicine (425 students), Faculty of Dental Medicine (180 students), Faculty of Law (243 students), Faculty of Economics and Business (1484 students), Faculty of Pharmacy (168 students), Faculty of Veterinary Medicine (325 students), Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (1064 students), Faculty of Science and Technology (744 students), Faculty of Public Health (567 students), Faculty of Psychology (235 students), Faculty of Humanities (497 students), Faculty of Nursing (249 students), Faculty of Fisheries and Marine (451 students), Faculty of Vocational Studies (1404 students), and Faculty of Advanced Technology and Multidiscipline (155 students).

This tuition fee remission is given to students with financial difficulties for various reasons, such as loss of parent, retiring parent, laid-off parent, bankrupt parent and other causes as per regulations. Responding to the pandemic that affects people’s economy, the instalment of payments is also an alternative for the financially troubled students.

As of December 2020, 31.57 percent of UNAIR students (from the total 29,114 students) are scholarship recipients. Various scholarships they receive include scholarships from the Directorate General of Higher Education (DIKTI) of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology, Ministry of Religious Affairs, City/Regency governments, state-owned enterprises, agencies, foundations, and also from UNAIR such as Activist and Tahfidz Alquran Scholarships. The percentage is far beyond the required student scholarship percentage expected by the government, which is at 20 percent.

Previously, regarding tuition fee payment for odd semester 2021/2022 period, in details, Universitas Airlangga has issued some policies, through a circular of Director of Finance, as follows:

1. 1. Students from undergraduate (S1), four-year vocational (D4) program, three-year vocational (D3), in their last semester and only need to finish their thesis or final assignment (S1/D4 at ≥ 9th semester and D3 at ≥ 7th semester), will get 50% remission. Each faculty can request remission collectively for this mechanism.
2. 2. Students who have extended their studies in odd semester 2020/2021 and have not completed their studies by June 30, 2021, are obliged to pay tuition fee for even semester 2020/2021 as per agreement, and they are eligible for 50% tuition fee remission.
3. 3. Students from the second point are obliged to pay the odd semester 2021/2022 tuition fee and get 50% tuition fee remission as stated in point 1. Each faculty can request remission collectively for this mechanism.
4. 4. Students who have extended their studies (BWS) at the even semester 2020/2021, so they are eligible for fully waived odd semester 2021/2022 tuition fee, must complete their studies by February 20, 2022.
5. 5. D3, D4, S1, and professional program students who cannot pay due to financial difficulties can submit a remission request for the odd semester 2021/2022 tuition fee, which will be verified by each faculty and processed through Cybercampus app.
6. 6. Professional students who just need to wait for their competence exam will pay Rp 1,000,000 as per regulation.
7. 7. Master’s and doctoral program students (S2 and S3) with financial difficulties due to pandemic can submit an installment payment or a payment postponement request to Integrated Service Unit (ULT).
8. 8. Students who just need to wait for judicium (D3, D4, S1, Professional, Specialist and Master’s programs) or Open Defense Exam (S3) can submit payment exclusion form if their studies are declared ‘Complete’ on October 30, 2021, at the latest (payment postponement can be requested before if necessary).
9. 9. Students who apply for academic leave in odd semester 2021/2022 are excluded from payment obligation for that semester, with approval from Vice Dean I of each faculty/ Vice Director I of Postgraduate School and Director of Education.

These policies are made as forms of UNAIR’s commitment to supporting the continuity of students’ studies. They are in line with UNAIR’s support towards achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially the No Poverty category. Furthermore, UNAIR Rector hoped that students could be discipline in implementing health protocols wherever they are and keep up their excellent work developing creativity. (*)

Author: Binti Q. Masruroh