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The Student Activist Group (SAG) is a student-run, student-funded non-profit organisation dedicated to community-based research, education, action and awareness in the public interest. The SAG promotes free education for all students throughout Australia.

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We want an end to campus restructures that see staff out of a job and students forced to try and learn in badly underfunded institutions while fees keep rising. Student unions will be working together to fight every new attack, as well as to demanding more funding for higher education. We want accessible education for everyone!

We need a campaign that can fight against both government and university cuts and that is run by the national union and campus unions together. We need an education campaign that includes national protests, demonstrations against Liberals and Vice Chancellors and that will stand up for students rights. But we need to do more than just maintain the status quo. Already students are faced with debt that amounts to $42.3 Billion dollars nationally. Already 61% of students live below the poverty line. Already Australia comes in 33rd of the 34 OECD countries in funding for higher education.

We need to make education free again!

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1. The Australian Government is raising university fees by up to $3600
2. They want to rip nearly $4 billion out of higher education
3. They want us to pay back our student debt earlier when we are struggling to find full time work upon graduation
4. We want to MAKE EDUCATION FREE AGAIN!

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1. Why should my tax dollars go towards other people’s education?

We already provide free education at a pre-school, primary, and secondary level. Why should we not provide education for free at a tertiary level? Tuition fees tend to exclude ‘good students that ‘deserve’ to win a university place, but who have underestimated their talents; and they tend to include less talented students from privileged families’ as determined by an article in the Education Economics journal by David Flacher and Hugo Harari-Kermadec. Increases in tuition fees can affect people from lower socio-economic background gaining access to higher education. If we look at a case study on Canadian tuition fee increases in the 1990s in The Canadian Journal of Economics by Michael B. Coelli, we can see that the fee increases reduced enrolment from people with lower socio-economic backgrounds. It would seem that if we want to encourage a fair society that allows people from different backgrounds to have as many possibilities for their future, allowing higher education to be more accessible to all would be a step in the right direction.

2. Why are we wasting money on students who might fail?

We already provide public funding for projects that may not be successful. Why should we spend public money on medical research to preventing serious illness if there is a chance of failure? Why should we spend public money on research into renewable energy? There should always be room for failure on the road to success. However, it is also worth noting that financial stress can affect academic performance. According to an article focussing on the American experience in the Journal of College Student Development by Jebediah J. Northern, William H. O’Brien, and Paul W. Goetz, ‘students with higher levels of financial stress seem to devote more hours to working outside jobs in addition to course work, which may negatively impact their grades’. So reducing the financial burden on students could have a positive effect on the academic performance of students.

3. Why should international students pay higher fees for their education?

International education generates a record $20.3 billion for the Australian economy. Under Australian consumer law, it is a proprietor's right to set prices and terms and conditions as long as the selection criteria and total price are prominently displayed. How do we justify charging overseas students more? The general consensus seems to be that overseas students pay more because they don't pay Australian taxes, which contribute to universities. Big education is big business. We agree that in this global economy, all students need to be respected as people making an effort to better themselves towards an uncertain future.

4. Wouldn't it make students more motivated if they know they'd have to work hard to pay for it?

First of all, there are so many students who are unable to afford the university fee to start with. These students might have to rely on part-time jobs to support themselves which largely affects their study. Second, even for those who are supported by family, this argument only considers a very narrow cases. For a lot of non-market based professions and fields of interests, money could not be the main source of motivation. Imagine what would we see today if Van Got had prioritised money over his innovative instinct. If educators use financial burden to motivate students, it is predictable that students would rush into the faculties such as finance and engineering, instead of art and science- either for themselves or for their parents who are paying the huge expense; students may also pursuit high grades and avoid difficulties, which undermines the actual learnings they meant to achieve. This is exactly what the story of Martin and Seymour trying to convey (see the video below). According to the most cited psychologists such as Richard M.Ryan and Edward L.Deci, intrinsic motivations always triumphs extrinsic ones in terms of what drives people to achieve higher goals. Therefore the government should provide the students with a free environment to encourage them to develop other than a push them to barely survive with a jungle rule.

5. Shouldn’t we motivate students to achieve high results to be eligible for a scholarship program?

An excellent academic record does not guarantee a fully paid or partial scholarship to students as there are limited scholarships available depending on the university’s budget and the eligibility requirements. It is really difficult to tell whether you will get a scholarship or not. As scholarship norms vary from university to university, some universities might look only at your academic performance while others might also consider extra-curricular activities. It also depends on other applicants, as if more number of academically excellent people will apply, your chances to get scholarship will decrease. Therefore, we promote free education for all students on the basis of equality and fairness in the education system. Every student deserves the same opportunities and access to free education.

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"It's truly disappointing to see what our education system has become" - Dr. Robinson, Law School Lecturer

"If I do finish my Law degree, I will be faced with a high HECS debt which I often worry about on a day to day basis. I'm not a superhuman, I'm a uni student" - Seymour, 2nd Year Law Student

"I keep trying and all I do is fail. Uni subjects are too expensive to fail. Sometimes it is just easier to give up while I'm ahead..." - Martin, 1st year Astrophysics Student

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Video: Stories of Martin and Seymour (and more)

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Video: Stories of Martin and Seymour (and more)

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This is a university assignment. All rights reserved.

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There are many ways that you can actively support the SAG in promoting free education throughout Australia.

1. Use the hashtags #freeeducation and #makeeducationfreeagain on your social media account to help spread the word

2. Register your group to participate in the upcoming rally on Nov 1st

3. Vote YES for free education

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Australian Government Department of Education and Training 2015, The Value of International Education to Australia, Australian Government Department of Education and Training, Canberra.

Coelli, M 2009, ‘Tuition Fees and Equality of University Enrolment’, The Canadian Journal of Economics, Vol. 42, No. 3, pp. 1072-1099.

Flacher, D & Harari-Kermadec, H 2013, 'Tuition Fees, Self-Esteem and Social Heterogeneity', Education Economics, Vol. 21, No. 2, pp. 191-210.

Goldrick-Rab, S & Kelly, AP 2016, ‘Should community college be free? Education next talks with Sara Goldrick-Rab and Andrew P. Kelly’, Education Next, Vol. 16, No. 1, p. 54.

Lewis, N 2012, ‘Free Education’, Dissent, Vol. 59, No. 3, p. 104.

Northern, J, O’Brien, W, and Goetz, P 2010, ‘The Development, Evaluation, and Validation of a Financial Stress Scale for Undergraduate Students’, Journal of College Student Development, Vol. 51, No. 1, pp. 79-92.

Richard, MR & Edward, LD 2000, 'Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivations: Classic Definitions and New Directions', Contemporary Educational Psychology, Vol. 25, No. 1, pp. 54-67.

Salgado, J 2017, ‘When Community College is Free’, New York Times, 19 Sep.