Stipend for studies abroad

From time to time, in this column I have replied to questions about the payment of stipends to Maltese students who choose to study abroad.

As a result of EU membership many more students are now pursuing studies abroad and the question therefore arose as to whether those students studying in other EU countries should be eligible to the payment of a stipend just like students who pursue their course here in Malta. Many students and parents have approached me about this matter.

I had argued that, on the basis of the principle of freedom of movement, Maltese students studying abroad should also qualify for a stipend or maintenance grant. Indeed, a judgment delivered by the European Court of Justice last year pointed to this direction.

Subsequently, in the Budget Speech last October, the Prime Minister had announced that the government considers that the time had come to provide financial support to young people who, for various reasons, pursue their undergraduate degree abroad. He therefore stated that the government would be setting up a scheme, with effect from the next academic year, to provide financial support for students studying abroad.

The same pledge was reiterated in the PN electoral manifesto earlier this year.

The government has now delivered on these pledges and last week announced a new scholarship scheme that would, for the first time, benefit students pursuing undergraduate studies at universities abroad as well as in private educational institutions in Malta. At the same time, the government also announced that it would be extending the existing scholarship scheme for post-graduate studies abroad, notably for students following Masters and PhD programmes.

The schemes were announced by Education Minister Dolores Cristina and her alacrity in pushing this through so soon after her appointment must surely be a feather in her cap. I greatly welcome these schemes since they are yet another recognition of the rights that Maltese students acquired as a result of EU membership. I am sure that students and parents will welcome them too.

According to an official government announcement, those benefiting from the undergraduate scholarship scheme will get the same financial support that is currently granted to students following undergrad courses at the University of Malta.

This is good news for it removes, once and for all, the difference in treatment between Maltese students who pursue their studies here and those studying abroad. After all, students who pursue their studies abroad are easing the financial burden on our educational system. There is therefore no reason to punish them by not granting them the same financial assistance that is made available for those studying here.

Of course, applicants must fulfil certain eligibility criteria such as the requirement to hold Maltese citizenship or at least one parent who holds Maltese citizenship. They must also have resided in Malta for a five-year period prior to their course and they must also have fulfilled the requirements to join the course of studies. Moreover, support is only granted if this would be the applicant's first degree and if the applicant had not previously benefited from another scholarship.

I trust that these requirements have been tested against EU law.

The scheme offers a standard financial support for general degrees but a higher level of support for prescribed courses that are considered as priority areas, such as biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, statistics, computer science, engineering and ICT.

My view is that the scheme should also be open, indeed even more so, for courses that are not available in Malta and where students are compelled to pursue studies abroad. I have come across many cases of students going abroad simply because their preferred course is not offered in Malta.

The scheme is open to 150 students selected on the basis of an order of merit. It might well have to be extended sooner rather than later.

It is not clear whether the scheme would also be open to students who have already started their course abroad and who will, say, start their second or third year this October.

It strikes me as fair and reasonable for the scheme to be available also to those students who have already taken the plunge but who desperately need some financial support to keep up with their expenses during their stay abroad.

More information on the undergrad scheme is available from the Ministry of Education or from www.education.gov.mt/mgss_ug.htm.

Information on the post-grad scheme is available from www.education.gov.mt/mgss.htm.

Questions to be answered in this column should be sent via e-mail to contact@simonbusuttil.eu or through www.simonbusuttil.eu.

Dr Busuttil is a Nationalist member of the European Parliament.