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The Council will put forward proposals regarding co-payments and will advance a risk analysis. Furthermore, the plenary session of university presidents emphasized the need for the project to incorporate university autonomy.
The Undersecretary of Higher Education, Víctor Orellana, stated that “we have always expressed our willingness to listen and build an agreement together, so we especially value the proposal that CRUCH will send us.”.
The impact of the Public Financing for Higher Education (FES) bill was once again at the center of the debate of the Council of Rectors of Chilean Universities (CRUCH).
At the meeting on Thursday, August 28, in addition to analyzing proposals to extend the co-payment prepared by the CRUCH Economic Commission, new aspects were raised that should be considered in the project.
The executive vice president of CRUCH and rector of the University of Tarapacá (UTA), Emilio Rodríguez, highlighted the
The importance of broadening the perspective on the project, at least in three aspects, was emphasized. He commented that “today we spoke with the university presidents and agreed that it is essential to incorporate a risk analysis of certain aspects or variables that must be simulated and modeled.” Furthermore, “since the project has a very significant state funding component, university autonomy must be safeguarded. While it is protected by various laws, we believe it would send a strong signal if this autonomy were also incorporated into the project,” Rodríguez indicated. Thirdly, “if this is a higher education funding system, it should consider other elements, such as contributions to the supply of programs. We believe this is a fundamental issue, given that investment in science, technology, knowledge, and innovation is quite low in the country,” the executive vice president affirmed.
The Undersecretary of Higher Education, Víctor Orellana, who participated in the session held at the Metropolitan Technological University, expressed his receptiveness to the proposals from the Council of Rectors of Chilean Universities (CRUCH). “For the Government, the second legislative stage is a key opportunity for dialogue and reaching agreements. We have always expressed our willingness to listen and build consensus together, so we especially value the proposal that CRUCH will submit. Once received, we will study it with the same spirit of collaboration and openness that we have maintained thus far, appropriately balancing the needs of individuals, higher education institutions, and the country.”.
It is worth remembering that the FES Project is currently in the Senate to continue its legislative process, after the Chamber of Deputies approved the law in general and in particular.
Aboutthe co-payment
The president of the CRUCH Economic Commission and rector of the University of Talca, Carlos Torres, elaborated on the factors that justify co-payment.
“Regardless of setting regulated fees based on costs, there are certain differences between institutions that cater to specific educational projects that are impossible to represent in a generalist model. In that sense, we believe that co-payments are based primarily on this difference in approaches, in the educational perspectives that each institution recognized under Law 21.091 has,” Torres stated.
He added that “we also see that the composition of university study programs is quite dissimilar. And this, of course, implies income and cost structures that are also differentiated. Furthermore, there are certain characteristics that are more specific to the location of the institution, the regulations to which it is subject, which also generate differences that are impossible to capture in a generalist model.”.
In conclusion, “we see that co-payments would provide flexibility to accommodate these differences within the proposed model. And, of course, it must be understood that universities, with their income, ultimately produce public goods. Therefore, to the extent that this income enters the institution, it will materialize into a benefit for society,” stated the president of the Economic Commission.
The CRUCh will maintain an active advocacy agenda to present and discuss this proposal with parliamentarians and government authorities, seeking to ensure that the final legal framework recognizes the diversity of the system and guarantees its long-term financial viability.
CRUCH Commemorative Book
Another milestone that marked the session was the presentation of the CRUCH commemorative book “70 years building the knowledge, development and future of Chile”.
The book includes a historical overview of the Council's early years and its main achievements over the past decade (2014-2024), as well as columns by government officials, National Prize winners in various fields, and the presidents of CRUCH universities. The content covers topics such as university institutional frameworks; science and technology; arts and humanities; quality teaching; territorial development; and CRUCH's strategic challenges leading up to 2030.
Text and photographs: CRUCH Communications
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