Closure of a University

[Stallion]

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/285051/1/.html

Many issues about UNSW Asia unresolved as school shuts on Friday
By Pearl Forss, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 28 June 2007 2046 hrs

SINGAPORE : The shutters go down at the Asian campus of the University of New South Wales for the final time on Friday.

But there are still many matters unresolved.

Over 330 applications were submitted to the local universities by students from UNSW Asia.

Many had to spend a lot of time on the applications, just a few days before their UNSW examinations.

Foreign students even had to sit for qualifying exams.

But Channel NewsAsia understands that the local universities are offering only about 20 places.

"They feel very disappointed because they felt that special consideration was not given to them as promised by the various authorities," said Angeline Tan, a UNSW Asia student.

"As a foreign student, I don't really know how the authorities work in Singapore. But when I first came here, I was quite confident they would be very reliable. But when this whole thing happens, it seems like there's no help offered from the government," said Indonesian student Teddy Setiardi, UNSW Asia.

One university said it was already bending backwards to accommodate the students, as university places are already taken up by the larger "dragon year" cohort.

For those who have opted to continue their studies in UNSW Sydney, there's a new concern.

UNSW has an additional clause to the grant which it is giving students who are relocating to Australia.

"They did say they'll give us $22,000 without clauses but when we received the documents, they said that we have to pass our modules every semester in order to get this $22,000 per year. This wasn't what they initially said," said Tan Chin Nan, UNSW Asia student.

Students said a larger class size and less attention from faculty could possibly mean poorer grades.

Many academic staff are also left hanging with no job offers.

Some are planning to sue if the school refuses to enter into negotiations with them by next week.

To date, the Economic Development Board (EDB) refuses to reveal how much in grants it had given to UNSW despite continual calls for transparency.

UNSW staff had said the school received $17.3 million in grants.

But does the university now have to repay this sum in full and what are the terms of repayment?

The EDB has declined to comment when asked these questions.

Then there is the issue of the land at Changi. Piling is done and experts said restoring the land to its original condition is estimated to cost the school about $10 million.

But Singapore Expo has expressed interest in building budget hotels on the site.
JTC Corporation, which holds the land lease, said the land is still under the management of UNSW.

So it is premature, at this juncture, to discuss future plans for the land. - CNA /ls