The principal of the University of Edinburgh, Prof Sir Peter Mathieson, has warned that Scotland’s university funding system is no longer sustainable and needs urgent reform to protect the sector.
Speaking on BBC Scotland’s Scotcast podcast, Mathieson said Scottish students should be allowed to contribute towards the cost of their education through a graduate repayment scheme linked to income, rather than traditional upfront tuition fees. Undergraduate tuition is currently free for most Scottish students.
He stressed that he was not calling for the return of tuition fees but argued that universities are in danger under the current model. According to him, the system can only survive if the Scottish government significantly increases funding per student or reduces the number of funded places — both of which he described as politically difficult options.
Mathieson said allowing graduates to repay some costs after earning a certain income could offer a fair alternative. “Scotland’s universities are magnificent, but they need to be protected by rethinking how they are funded,” he said.
The comments come as the University of Edinburgh carries out a £140m cost-cutting programme due to financial pressures, prompting staff strikes and fears of up to 1,800 job losses. Similar concerns have spread across other Scottish universities, with strike ballots under way at Aberdeen, Heriot-Watt, Stirling and Strathclyde.
At Dundee University, where a £35m deficit led to a £40m government bailout, Mathieson said the crisis exposed how fragile the sector has become, especially its reliance on international students’ fees.
Meanwhile, policymakers are also being urged to review Scotland’s four-year degree system, which costs more than England’s three-year model and adds financial pressure on both students and public funding.
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