Gabrile Dike
The management of Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba (AAUA), Ondo State has announced an increment in school fees for old and new students for the 2017/2018 academic session.
The total package range from N120, 000 to N150, 000 depending on faculty for returning students and N180, 000 for new students. The old package was N25, 300.
Some students who spoke to Sunday Sun on the development said they were shocked when they logged into the university portal and discovered the new fees for the next academic session which starts on Sunday, April 8, 2018.
The increment is over 250 per cent and the action of the management is already generating ripples among the students.
A breakdown of the new fees revealed that new students are expected to pay N1, 000 faculty association dues and caution fee, N5,000 for matriculation fees, N10,000 for verification of certificate, N7,000 for examination, N80,000 for tuition, N10,000 for lab workshop/language/field trip and N5,000 for professional fees.
For old students, the new fees are N3, 000 for ID card, N10, 000 for result processing, N500 student union due, N1, 000 faculty association dues, N7,500 examination, N46,000 tuition and N5,000 professional fees.
The old fees were N4,000 tuition, N2,000 registration record, N1,500 examination, N1,000 library, N250 department levy, N1, 500 GST, N500 ID card, N750 sport, N1,000 health centre, N2,500 development levy, N2, 500 ICT levy, N1,500 e-learning facilities, N3,500 entrepreneur development, N200 student union dues, N2,000 lab workshop, N600 faculty association dues and N1, 000 for SIWES brining the total to N26, 300.
Shocked by the increment, many students including the newly admitted have kicked against it and have not started payment as directed by the university management.
Old students alleged that many of them struggled to pay the old school fee of N26, 300 by installment and wondered how their parents will cope with the new increment. They appealed to Governor Rotimi Akeredolu to direct the school management to revert to the old fees.
Reacting to the increment, AAUA image-maker, Mr. Sola Imoru, said the decision was taken by the university management with the approval of the governor.
Imoru disclosed that the new fees varies from the over 50 departments and students are expected to log on to the university portal to register for the 2017/2018 academic session.