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So, what exactly are we paying for?

Heslington East Blueprint
Is this what we're paying for?
Tuesday, 14th October 2008
Figures recently obtained by The Yorker reveal that University of York Vice-Chancellor, Brian Cantor, reclaimed almost £30,000 in expenses on top of his £52,000 salary in the academic year ending in 2007.

That's more than 3 times as much as the next highest spender: Alcuin Provost, Tony Ward.

Whilst most of the claims were for travel & hotel expenses, Professor Cantor also spent £1,500 on food and drink during his trips, a figure some students would be lucky to spend on food in a whole year. Additionally there were reports made earlier this year of university staff regularly taking guests out for dinner at top York restaurants and claiming up to £500 a time on expenses for these outings.

These figures have been revealed after several years of budget cuts affecting students in the name of saving for the university's expansion in Heslington East. For example massive cuts to library funding and the decision to leave campus bridges in various states of disrepair. However, between 2004 and 2006, university income from student fees rose by an astonishing 33% and the university's consolidated income last year was around £187 million. So where are these massive amounts of cash going, aside from Heslington East and the wining and dining of academics?

Well maybe it's going towards making our accommodation cheaper. Let's compare with Lancaster, where the cheapest standard room for 38 weeks will cost you £2,527. That's a £300 saving on a standard room in Goodricke College for the same period. But the rooms must be equally low standard, right?

Well I guess you'll just have to judge that for yourself.

Quote The list of failures by the university to put students first when it comes to spending is too long to bother wasting your time with. Quote

OK so it's probably not accommodation. Maybe it's going towards excellent sports facilities? Heslington East isn't the only time the university's planned to build a pool. When campus was originally designed it included a swimming pool and a grandstand. In 1994 the university announced it would build a pool that autumn only to cancel the idea in 1995 after already raising the majority of the money for the building, citing expense as the major issue.

I could go on, but the list of failures by the university to put students first when it comes to spending is too long to bother wasting your time with. This leads me to conclude that the university is run first and foremost as a business; some education is a byproduct but right now the primary focus is attracting more new students (whether their accommodation is finished or not): more students resulting in more money and more funding.

Now I know that the university has to be business-like in order to stay solvent, but perhaps some of that Heslington East money and money squandered in other ways should be put towards getting what already exists right, before building more.

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#1 Anonymous
Mon, 20th Oct 2008 12:48am

Oversea student tuition fee:

£12555 this year for a science degree course, no discount will be given for paying them in one go.

BAD.

#2 Richard Mitchell
Mon, 20th Oct 2008 12:09pm

I have since been informed that pictures of Bowland at Lancaster Uni are outdated. Most halls at Lancaster now feature large, flat-screen TVs in communal areas and other aspects of the accommodation have also been drastically improved.

#3 Chris Northwood
Mon, 20th Oct 2008 12:40pm

But we still won Roses

#4 Richard Mitchell
Mon, 20th Oct 2008 4:06pm

Did we, Chris? I don't remember us rowing to victory or kicking ass in some kind of sporting arena. I think all WE did, was sit around and comment on The Yorker.

Plus, I'd rather have the £300 back hehe.

#5 Jay Walker
Wed, 12th Nov 2008 2:20pm

Mitch, as much as I don't want to rain on your parade, as someone who went to Lancaster University for 3 years, and was in Bowland College, I can confirm that the pictures of the Bowland room on the site is very misrepresentative.

As the oldest rooms on campus, they were quite rightly the cheapest as they were kinda grotty and the ceilings, on B Floor Main at least, were insanely low!

#6 Anonymous
Wed, 12th Nov 2008 9:34pm

I heard that the reason we have crazy timetables (i.e. starting 2-4 weeks after most unis) is because they plan the timetables around conference seasons. Is this true and does this add to your argument?

#7 Anonymous
Thu, 13th Nov 2008 1:14pm

I heard the reason all the freshers didn't have accomodation at the start of term was because Brian Cantor had a massive party and all his friends came to stay, and they got wasted and they trashed all the rooms, so they had to spend time refurbishing them all. Is this true, and does this add to your argument?

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