ALMOST 2,000 students protested in University College Dublin yesterday at what they believe are excessive charges levied on students by the college authorities.
Mr Cormac Moore, education officer of UCD students union, said the college had increased its fee for deferring or resitting examinations by 250 per cent in the last 12 months, raising it from £30 to £103. A fee of £103 is charged for resitting examinations, while a fine of £50 is levied for a late payment of fees.
Mr Moore said he believed students were paying excessive fees, which were above those charged in other colleges and called on the UCD authorities to provide a breakdown of the charges.
"We want the college to be accountable to students and to bring down the cost of the fees to the cost price for the college," he said. Last year, almost 6,000 students signed a petition condemning the college authorities' failure to provide a breakdown and justification of the fees.
A spokeswoman for the college said the fees were in line with other colleges and that the students union had got some of its figures wrong, including the deferral fee.
The registrar of the college, Dr Caroline Hussey, said the college was accountable for income, including that derived from fees, to the Higher Education Authority, the Comptroller and Auditor General and the UCD governing body, on which the students' union is represented.