St Andrews University students set up camp outside the principal’s office to protest about tuition fees.
About a dozen students went to the campus at 6am for the start of a peaceful 36-hour demonstration against the introduction of £9,000-a-year fees for undergraduates from England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Members of the group were still camped out at the site on Tuesday night. A number of tents had been set up and musicians were set to provide entertainment.
Students told The Courier the decision to charge the maximum for courses from next year had been taken without consultation.
One geography student said: “Because they did it over the summer, the decision was made with no student involvement.
“They think if they do these things over the summer we will come back and be too apathetic to do anything about it.
“I think it’s good for students to see that something’s actually happening instead of us just accepting that the decision has been made and thinking there’s nothing we can do about it. These are changes that are going to affect people’s futures.
“Being the most expensive university in Europe is not the legacy we want our university to carry.”
Students said that the protest was for 36 hours to symbolise the £36,000 debt set to be racked up by future graduates. They are demanding an immediate withdrawal of the proposed fees as well as greater transparency in university decision making.
A second year English student said: “Since the decision to raise tuition fees was made out of term time while students were away, it is of vital importance to let those in charge of the University of St Andrews know that there is a large student opposition to these unnecessary measures.
“It is also very important to show other students who may feel strongly against these new fees that vocal protest and occupation is a perfectly valid and effective way of making this disagreement felt.”
A fourth year international relations student said: “I believe that this increase in fees across Scotland is detrimental to higher education.
There were claims staff initially tried to ask students to leave however the university denied this, stating protestors were free to come and go as they pleased.
He said Scottish students, who are exempt from the charges, had united with students from the rest of the UK in opposing the fees.
A spokeswoman for St Andrews University said: “A group of 12 students set up four tents in the grounds of 9 The Scores, the principal’s residence, just after 6am this morning.
“With safety of paramount concern, the university is permitting the occupation, managing access and recognising the students’ right to peaceful protest.
“As we have already publicly stated, a fee of £9,000 per annum to attend St Andrews is a very good deal and does not cover the cost of the education provided nor does it reflect the lifelong benefits accrued by our students.
“We are not a wealthy institution. In spite of our age and our international standing our endowment is remarkably small.
“Indeed, the primary purpose of our 600th anniversary fundraising campaign is to build a large and lasting endowment to support our students and staff. Quite simply, we cannot afford not to charge £9,000 per annum.
“We recognise, however, that this is a significant change for our RUK (rest of the UK) students and to mitigate its impact we are introducing a comprehensive bursary and scholarship program in order to ensure that those qualified to attend St Andrews will be able to afford to do so.”