News
The Executive Committee appreciated that the final version of the project largely incorporates the technical proposals formulated by the Council of Rectors of Chilean Universities during the legislative process.
The analysis identifies relevant advances in university autonomy and in key definitions to strengthen the viability and sustainability of the new financing instrument.
He Executive committee The Council of Rectors of Chilean Universities (CRUCH) appreciated that the final version of the bill that creates a new public financing instrument for higher education (FES) largely incorporates the technical proposals and approaches formulated by the Council during the legislative process.
Following a detailed review of the final version of the project, the Executive Committee delivered to the Undersecretariat of Higher Education the document “Analysis and observations on the final version of the bill that establishes a new public financing instrument for higher education (FES)”, which identifies technical and institutional advances that contribute to strengthening the sustainability of the instrument and safeguarding structural principles of the higher education system.
The document prepared by the CRUCH Executive Committee raises considerations in four main areas: university autonomy; state funding conditions; comprehensive, stable and timely funding; and cross-cutting aspects.
Among the aspects valued, the explicit incorporation of the principle of university autonomy in the first article of the bill stands out. Also valued is the establishment of a tiered co-payment system for deciles 7 through 9, based on the percentages stipulated in Law No. 21,091, as well as the authorization to charge up to the actual tuition fee in the ninth decile for institutions with accreditation of excellence. Other noteworthy aspects include the establishment of regulations for tuition fee regulation, subject to prior review by the Expert Commission for Tuition Fee Regulation (CERA); the synchronization of FES transfers with the deadlines for institutional funding of tuition-free education; the continuation of strategic scholarships; and the creation of a triennial report evaluating the impact of the new instrument.
On the other hand, partial progress is acknowledged in matters such as the definition of quotas, the limit on future contributions, debt collection mechanisms and the strengthening of basic financing for CRUCH universities.
Finally, the document raises the possibility of also eliminating the restriction on charging the ninth decile for institutions with advanced accreditation.
It is worth remembering that, in its capacity as an advisory body on matters of public policy for higher education, the CRUCH has made a systematic contribution to the legislative debate, through the preparation of technical analyses and the formulation of proposals aimed at strengthening the design and viability of the instrument.
Read the full document here.
Text: CRUCH Communications.
Photo: Aldo Triacchini B. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 License. https://flic.kr/p/PaaRGt
Spanish 
English