BNTU gives out season tickets for January

The university has decided not to wait till the President’s decree on categorical assistance was out. Season tickets are given even to students paying for their education.
Students will lose their discount on public transport tickets in three days. ERB has found out that only BNTU decided to support students and bought 4 thousand season tickets for the last decade of December and for January.

The deputy head of the professional committee of BNTU students Natallya Kanoika says that the assistance will be rendered only to those who are renting flats. The university’s list of “the poor” is much bigger. The others will have to wait for official announcements: it is still unclear how they are going to get money for categorical assistance.

Natallya Kanoika: We have bought tickets for students getting free education and for those who pay for it. The money was not allocated from the budget; it was the off-budget university’s fund, so the university spent its own money for it.

The pro-rector of the Belarusian Medical University Uladzimir Manulik is not eager to support his colleague.

Uladzіmіr Manulіk: It is senseless to take proactive steps now. You give them a carrot and buy them decade season tickets and thus solve the problem… So what?

Students of the medical university will get assistance only in February.

Uladzіmіr Manulіk: Our students visit 10 hospitals in the city; they do not need tickets for the first, second or fifth decade. They buy a ticket for a month. There are 70% of students from other cities in our university. They get ready for examinations in January and stay at home. They do not need seasonal tickets that much because they only need to buy 8 tickets for 4 exams.

The trade union of Belarusian State Pedagogic University is not even aware how the categorical assistance will be rendered. Its head Vadzim Hrachou told ERB that they were waiting for instructions from the higher authorities. According to the list, the majority of students need material consideration.

Vadzim Hrachou: This is a pedagogical university – it’s a university for workers and peasants. Why being ashamed of it? Students mostly come here from regions and you know that wages in the regions are not very high.
BSU and Management Academy of the President of the Republic of Belarus also do not know anything about categorical assistance.

ERB found out that the sum of 8.750 BRB given to students renting flats will be raised to 48 thousands. Categorical assistance for Minsk and regional students will differ.

At first universities were supposed to allocate their own money for the assistance. Now they are waiting for the President’s decree that will increase the scholarship fund from 1.5% to 4%.

The deputy head of the Belarusian trade union of teachers and scientists Aleh Dapira does not think that the document will be out this year. He also thinks that universities trying to solve the problem on their own risk making it more confusing.

Aleh Dapira: Where will they find it? A university can only get money if its expenses are lower than its profit. It means that the cost of education should increase. How will they find it?

So students will lose their discount for tickets and will try to survive on their scholarship till the beginning of February.

Photo by  students.usaaa.ru