Arqus universities advance work on tuition fee models for joint programmes in Brussels

Representatives from the universities of Arqus met on 12 May in Brussels to advance the development of a common framework for sustainable tuition fee models for joint programmes, with a particular focus on joint degrees and European Degree Label programmes.

The meeting of the Arqus Education Board, co-chaired by Ana María Rivas (Vice-Rector for Quality, Teaching Innovation and Undergraduate Studies of the University of Granada) and Mireille van Poppel (Vice-Rector for Internationalisation of the University of Graz), brought together institutional representatives both onsite and online to discuss one of the key challenges facing transnational higher education: how to create fair, transparent and workable tuition fee systems across universities operating under different national and regional regulations.

The overall aim of the initiative is to develop a framework and practical templates that can support future joint programme consortia in designing tuition fee models that are fair for students, financially sustainable for partner institutions and administratively feasible within different legal contexts.

During the first thematic block, participants focused on mapping the legal, financial and institutional frameworks governing tuition fees and programme financing at each Arqus university. Discussions covered national and regional legislation, internal university regulations, limits on fee charging, scholarship and fee waiver systems, and the relationship between student fees and public funding mechanisms.

The universities also exchanged information on how new study programmes are financed and how financial planning is approached when developing joint educational initiatives, including issues such as cost estimation, revenue assumptions and risk-sharing mechanisms between partner institutions.

A second discussion block explored institutional positions and guiding principles regarding tuition fees in joint programmes. Participants highlighted the importance of presenting collaboratively offered programmes as coherent and unified structures, including in their fee policies, while also recognising the need for flexible administrative arrangements adapted to local realities.

Several concrete aspects were discussed, including which institution should collect fees, whether students should pay a single consortium fee or separate fees at different universities and the role of scholarships and fee waivers in ensuring accessibility.

Beyond operational aspects, the meeting also opened discussions on possible medium and long-term actions to improve existing frameworks, including adaptations of internal regulations, sector-level initiatives and potential policy developments at national or regional level.