Elite universities with poor records of enrolling disadvantaged students would be the big winners under the federal government's new Commonwealth scholarship scheme, according to new modelling.
Regional and suburban universities – which typically enrol more students from poor backgrounds – may have only 20 per cent of the funds to spend on scholarships for disadvantaged students as their elite counterparts, according to the National Tertiary Education Union modelling.
The federal government last week introduced legislation into Parliament that, if passed, would allow universities to set their own fees and reduce Commonwealth course funding by 20 per cent.
Universities would be required to spend $1 of every $5 in increased fees on equity scholarships for disadvantaged students.
The union's modelling found that a regional university with 30 per cent of disadvantaged students would have $1733 to spend on scholarships for each such student under a deregulated fee system.
An inner-city university with 10 per cent disadvantaged students would have $5200 to spend on scholarships for each disadvantaged student. A university with 5 per cent of disadvantaged students would have $10,400.
The modelling assumes both universities have 16,000 undergraduate students and increase fees from the maximum tuition fee of $8000 to $13,000 a year.
The proposed scholarship scheme has split the university sector, which has united behind other demands including support for fee deregulation and a compensation package for regional universities.
The elite "Group of Eight" universities support the proposed scholarship scheme while the Regional Network of Universities opposes it. Regional universities want the scholarship money to be pooled so students can use it to study at the campus of their choice.
In the introduction speech for his higher education legislation, Mr Pyne said the scholarship scheme was "one of the most important and valuable elements of the reform package".
"With this investment, institutions will be able to provide tailored, individualised support to help disadvantaged students, including help with costs of living while they study, something regional students and families will especially welcome," he said. "The scholarships will also be able to cover fee exemptions and mentoring, tutorial support and even relocation expenses."
