"Humanities Subjects Are Just As Important": Students Aren't Okay With the Increased Cost of Arts Degrees

"There’s a lot of useful skills that you get in humanities degrees."

Last month, the federal government announced that the cost of studying humanities at university is set to double, while "job-relevant" course fees will be decreased under an overhaul of tertiary education.

The ABC reported that the government is aiming to funnel students into industries that will drive job growth, such as psychology, English, languages, teaching, agriculture, maths, science, health, environmental science and architecture.

Students undertaking those courses will have their fees slashed and will pay between $3,700 and $7,700 per year. On the other hand, the cost of studying law and commerce will increase by 28 per cent, with humanities fees increasing by 113 per cent.

On top of that, according to data from Professor David Peetz of Griffith University, overall government funding will be cut by an annual $1,883 per student, with an average increase in tuition fees of $675 per student.

The move could discourage students from studying humanities if it will cost them around $45,000 for a three-year undergraduate degree.

It took my 8 years to pay off my Arts degree with Honours under HECS.
Humanities jobs are not the most high paying so, I feel sorry for those who presumably will now take twice as long to pay it off now that the fees have doubled

— Tali Aualiitia (@taliaualiitia) June 18, 2020

"This is when humanities is actually needed the most."

For current Year 12 students who were planning on studying humanities in 2021, the decision is particularly stressful. As Year 12 student Ashley Orr (WA) tells Student Edge, it has made her feel somewhat uncertain about her future.

"I’ve had my sights set on law for basically my entire life, but this makes me wonder whether all my hard work is worth it," she says.

"Like, is it really worth spending six years studying if I’m going to spend half my life paying it off? It’s so frustrating."

The government says pre-pandemic modelling has shown 62 per cent of employment growth in the next five years will be in health care, science and technology, education and construction. By decreasing the cost of certain degrees, the government hopes to increase the graduate employment rate. 

However, Ashley believes making sure humanities degrees are still accessible to all students is essential.

"It’s like a knee-jerk reaction, because [the government] thinks we need to improve the economy right now, so they’re trying to force students to choose career options that are going to benefit the economy sooner rather than later," she says.

"But humanities subjects are just as important."

Ashley also points out that humanities degrees give students the appropriate skills to tackle broader societal issues, which is needed now more than ever.

"There’s been the Black Lives Matter movement and all the economic turmoil that’s been going on [this year], so I feel like this is when humanities is actually needed the most. People who have studied history have better soft skills in communication and analysis," she says.

"I think it’s important to be able to reflect on how humanity has evolved and how we can help society in the future. We need to be able to reflect and learn from the past."

"I think it’s possible that some students will be pushed out of studying what they want."

Year 12s aren’t the only ones feeling frustrated by the news. Earlier this month, university students across Western Australia protested against the fee hikes.

As UWA Ordinary Guild Councillor Nicole McEwen tells us, universities should not be job factories.

"They can attack humanities the most because they’re trying to make an ideological argument that when you come out of uni, your education should be linked to industry," she says.

"So, there’s this perception in society that an arts degree or a humanities degree doesn’t get you a job."

With travel restrictions in place due to the coronavirus pandemic, an estimated 20,000 Year 12 students who would usually defer university are now less likely to take a gap year.

Consequently, Nicole highlights that more students will be looking to attend university but could be deterred from studying what they’re passionate about.

"It’s not like you can travel and take a gap year anymore, so people are being pushed into university at the same time as the fees are being increased," she says.

While Nicole believes some students might be willing to put more money towards their humanities degrees, she holds that the increase in fees is unjust.

"I think it’s completely unfair," she says.  

"There’s a lot of useful skills that you get in humanities degrees, and I think there’s no sensible reason to charge someone so much more for the access to those skills."

My arts degree has kept me in meaningful employment throughout my ensuing adult life. Subjects like philosophy were critical in shaping the writing I use in the job I support myself with today. #Humanities

— Jackie McMillan (@MissDissentEats) June 19, 2020

Header Image: miodrag ignjatovic / E+ via Getty Images