Thanks, but...

Otago Polytechnic students are pleased with the announcement that more public funding will be invested in the Polytechnic and other institutions, however warn that it is not enough.

"The bums-on-sets EFTS funding model has not served polytechnics well and moving away from solely EFTS based funding is welcome, however this package only scratches the surface and may introduce new problems" said Richard Mitchell, Otago Polytechnic Students' Association president.

"The government claims this is a significant investment in tertiary education, however in reality it is the bare minimum required by the sector to ensure its viability" said Mr. Mitchell.

"Though the government is investing $90 million dollars into the ITP sector for capital development over the next four years, the truth is that several of the country's 22 Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics currently each need at least $20 million dollars this year alone" states Mr. Mitchell.

The Tertiary Education Commission wants institutes of technology and polytechnics to take on further roles under the new reforms. OPSA is concerned that these reforms will require more investment than this package proposes.

"Without further funding increases for ITPs to meet these reforms there will more pressure on ITP budgets which may be counter-intuitive to the aims of helping institutions meet the needs of their communities" said Mr. Mitchell.

ENDS

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