ON/OFF CAMPUS Design by Louise James
Is this the end of the Wurst and the Crêpes? How Brexit is affecting the European societies on our Campus.
Having claimed nearly a million lives worldwide, the infamous pathogen Covid-19 understandably remains our most significant concern today. Leaving the European Union no longer appears to be Britain’s top priority. We should not, however, underestimate the continuous effects Brexit has on both our academic and cultural experiences. What might not yet have been noticed by the Scottish students, certainly haunts every European society on the University of Dundee’s campus. The rules that make studying in Scotland affordable for most EU students legally derive from European Union’s treaties. Following the exit of the United Kingdom from the European structures, it will become substantially difficult, if not impossible, for our European peers and younger colleagues to study in Dundee. In other words: they will not get the education they might have dreamt about for all their lives. The cultural Societies which bring together students from various EU countries on Campus, might eventually cease to exist even within the next three or four years. With the 2020/21 Academic Year being the last one to operate following ‘the old
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rules’, where Home Fee rates apply to students from the EU, it makes it the last term in which our European friends do not have to sell their kidneys to afford to study with us. One of my European colleagues, when asked if they would be able to afford to study in Dundee, said: "Even though, as a socially privileged person, I would have the possibility to
Themed events, regional cuisine tasting, bake sales, pub quizzes or even Language Cafés . . . might all become things of the past . . .
co-hosted by Europeans might all become things of the past with little chance of being revived from the University’s archive sheets in the near future. Whether they will all fade away is not yet determined. The alternative exists. The current EU students' places might be taken by those Europeans who have the financial resources to afford such experience. It would, however, be another symptom of the commercialisation of British universities.
come to Dundee under the imposition of international fees, I would probably not come to the small city in Scotland and would have chosen England instead." Whereas it might sound quite pretentious and unpleasant, from a pragmatic point of view, when money is at stake, fees are the determining factor. In other words, for many, lower fees are what makes the Scottish universities stand out among other British institutions. Therefore, starting in 2022, each year will potentially see more European students leaving than joining our University.
The main words that remained in my head after the Opening Ceremony of the 2019/2020 Academic Year, were that “Europeans are welcome in Dundee”. The emphasis put on this phrase made me feel truly a part of this great community in our city. Despite the University staff and the local students’ greatest efforts to reassure their European colleagues that they are welcome in Dundee, international students remain substantially affected by the decision-makers from the central Government. It is very upsetting to see that the access to British education for Europeans may soon be dictated not by their skills, but by their wealth.
Themed events, regional cuisine tasting, bake sales, pub quizzes or even Language Cafés organized and
Nevertheless, we do not have to wait another four years to see what happens to the European notion that