The proposal for a new social action system in higher education also aims to ensure “support adjusted to the cost of living in the municipality” where students are studying, “differentiating between relocated and non-relocated students,” according to a statement from the Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation (MECI).
The ministry additionally proposed to partners the creation of an incentive grant for students eligible for the first family allowance bracket (lowest income), which would be automatically awarded upon enrollment in the first year of higher education, amounting to 1,045 euros annually.
According to the ministry, the proposed reform of the social action system “aims to ensure that all students have the conditions to attend and complete a course, regardless of their economic situation,” and “is based on a diagnosis conducted by Nova SBE that identified structural limitations in the current system and demonstrated the impact of scholarships in reducing school dropouts.”
The proposed reform anticipates that “the real cost of living will be estimated for each municipality offering higher education, including expenses for tuition, food, transportation, and housing,” with differentiation made between relocated and non-relocated students to ensure that “support is proportional to the expenses incurred.”
The grant amount will result from the difference between the actual cost of studying in a particular municipality and the income the family can provide to the student for attending higher education.
“If the difference is positive, the student receives a grant,” the MECI states, adding that “this method ensures full progressivity and automatically adjusts the eligibility threshold to the calculated expenses in each municipality.”
Families with incomes below the poverty line will be deemed unable to contribute, resulting in the maximum grant being awarded to the student, the Government proposes.
The incentive grant for students in the first family allowance bracket “aims to mitigate the initial costs of enrollment and reduce the uncertainty faced by the most vulnerable students, promoting a more stable and secure transition to higher education,” explains the MECI.
The Government’s proposal outlines that housing support “is proportional to family income and the actual cost of rents in different regions of the country.”
“The new model ensures that all relocated students facing housing costs have access to the corresponding complement, preventing exclusion situations created by current rules,” assures the ministry, which awaits input from partners, including universities, polytechnics, associations, and academic federations, who were presented with the proposal in an “initial consultation meeting.”
