Birzeit retracts decision to fix tuition exchange rate

Birzeit University Council on Saturday decided not to adopt a fixed exchange rate for Jordanian Dinars for student tuition fees. The council decided to add 3 JOD to the tuition per credit for new undergraduate students and 1 JOD per credit for current undergraduate students. The tuition fees for postgraduate students will remain unchanged. The council said that since 88 percent of the students had already paid their tuition, or made the necessary financial arrangements, they will be reimbursed. The council praised the efforts of faculty and staff of the university and the Palestinian Authority that helped defuse tensions after students forcibly closed the University in protest on Sept. 25. Cuts to the Palestinian Authority budget have led to a fewer funds available to Palestinian academic institutions like Birzeit University, and as a result University authorities have been scrambling to find alternative sources of funding. The decision follows days of protests and strikes by Birzeit students opposed to the rise in tuition implementing the fixed exchange rate would entail. Students had previously been asked to pay their fees according to a high Jordanian dinar/Israeli shekel exchange rate. The protests successfully delayed the beginning of the 2013-14 academic year.