Hashemite University students protest administrative decisions

AMMAN — Following the lead of students at the University of Jordan, Hashemite University students on Wednesday started an open-ended demonstration on campus to protest recent administrative changes. 

The protesters stayed at the university overnight on Tuesday to launch the protest, students told The Jordan Times. 

The protesters’ main demand is the reversal of a recent decision that newly enrolled and transfer students must pay tuition fees before registration, activists said. 

Haneen, who declined to give her full name, said the decision is “not justified” and “affects many students at the university”.

“If you do not pay your tuition fees before the registration date, your schedule and credit hours are automatically deleted. They are not saved or registered under your name. This decision has negative consequences,” she told The Jordan Times.

The third-year student added: “Many students cannot afford to pay their fees in a short period of time, especially as the payment starts during the previous semester. The decision is not acceptable as the university doesn’t suffer from a financial deficit.”

Ahmad Saad, another activist, said the university had previously announced an increase in tuition fees, but the administration “did not provide a clear explanation” for the fee hike and swiftly reversed the decision. 

In July, the university administration announced a 50 per cent rise in post-graduate tuition fees, which university officials said aimed “to reduce student intake”.   

The decision was reversed after students held sit-ins on campus and in front of the Ministry of Higher Education.

University officials were not available for comment on Wednesday, but the administration said in a statement that it is “committed to the contract between the university and its students”.

“When students took their exams and were not satisfied by the results, they did not pay the fees for the credit hours they had registered for. They are currently pressuring the administration and university’s staff for that reason,” the statement said.

Protesting students are also calling for an extension to the registration period for the fall semester. 

In response, the university said it had already agreed to add six additional weeks for registration and that “students had sufficient time to enrol in classes”.