This note further clarifies a memo sent recently about fees. There has unfortunately been significant misinformation on social media, and it is important to clarify that students at LUMS will not pay any more than what they had committed to pay. In fact, some will actually end up paying less in certain cases explained below. The information below confirms that the 41% increase is a misunderstanding of the new payment structure and unnecessarily feeds into social media sensationalism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The\nSummer semester course fees are in fact lower by 18%, since the\nnew system charges Rs. 21,300 per credit hour instead of Rs. 26,000. Since\nstudents will not be staying in hostels, they will save more. Moreover, while\nin previous summer semesters, students were not eligible for financial aid,\nthey are eligible now. This will allow them to spread their courses over the\nyear giving them more flexibility. These reductions benefit all students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 13%\ninflationary increase that was tentatively scheduled to come into effect in the\nFall was based on the pre-COVID circumstances reflecting the State Bank of\nPakistan reported inflation numbers. In normal circumstances, we have to make\ninflation adjustments to ensure we maintain the highest standard of\neducation at par with premier universities across the globe. However, given\nthe COVID-19 crisis, we are already preparing contingency plans in case\nthe campus remains closed, or is partially reopened, and will pass on any\nsavings such as lower utilities bills to our students. In other words, the\nFall semester fees will be reassessed in July\/August.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Like the vast majority of internationally established universities, we are implementing a system that replaces a flat fee each semester with a per-unit charge. This ensures that student fees are proportionate to the number of courses into which they enroll. As mentioned, on average, LUMS students require 130 credit hours (CH) to graduate. Across the 3 major schools (Business, Science & Engineering, and Humanities\/Social Science), only 7.8% of students take and successfully complete more than 135 credit hours. The burden of the extra courses taken by these students is paid for by the overwhelming majority who do not take course overloads. The new system extinguishes this cross-subsidy so the majority of students are not penalized. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
We have\ngone further: Students presently at LUMS in their final years\nof study and who may exceed the average credit hours (130 CH) will\nnot pay more than they would have under the new system. They will be\naccommodated and grandfathered into the new system. In other words, every\nstudent is better off. LUMS is committed to its not-for-profit mission; our\nfinancial planning is aimed at remaining sustainable, not earning profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We hope\nthis note will remove the misunderstanding and misinformation\nabout the university. Our fees are a fraction of many comparable\ninternational institutions. Our mission continues to\nadvance educational opportunities in Pakistan and\nthe broader region educationally, economically and socially while\nremaining globally visible and competitive. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Thank\nyou.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Arshad Ahmad, VC LUMS<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Kamran Asdar Ali, Interim Provost, LUMS<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n