The Disparity Gap eases

For the sector of Malaysian students who resort to going overseas, the past few years have become increasingly difficult. Britain now requires overseas students to bear the 'full cost' of their education i.e. 3,300 pounds a year for a science degree. NZ and Australia followed suit last year by imposing a discriminatory fee of $1,500 a year - a stunning 600% increase. To the many middle and lower-middle class families (where the majority of Malaysian students currently in NZ come from) earning between $3,000-6,000 a year, even these two countries are now out of their reach. Thus, only children of the wealthier families can afford to come, with the exception of a handful who manage to borrow and work their way here. This discriminatory fee policy in effect widens the disparity gap and aggravates the indebtedness of families in Malaysia. The official reason given for the increase was that 'overseas students are generally from wealthy families' only adding insult to injury for the hapless victim.