For a long time you have been asking yourself what you are paying so much money for every term? Not long ago the summer term started but soon it comes the time where you have to pay the fees again. For now we want to explain briefly what the fees each term consist of:
In the Summerterm 2015 they were:
80,50 € – Fees for the students' service
8,70 € – Fees for the student body
163,76 € – Semester ticket
50 € – Administrative contribution
302,96 € – total amount
Fees for students' service
In total 20 percent of the revenues are financed with the fees for the students' service in Marburg. These fees finance the students' residents, the canteen and the Kindergardens. In total the fees of 80,50€ are scandalous when seen in comparison with the students' service's service. In comparison these services are even below average of hessian standards and inadequate in comparison with the national services. The students' service in Berlin has had a better service for less money (41€).
The student body has the oppinion that the fees have to be reduced in the short term and have to be abolished in the long term. At the same time the services have to be improved especially when talking about payable living space! Furthermore it has to be payed by the hessian funds! Public funds for public duties!
Explanation of the Administrative contribution
The so-called "administrative contribution" is a covert form of tuiton fees according to §56 HHG (Hessian University Law). According to the law the money finances services as for example the immatriculation, leave semesters or re-registration as well as services of the departments for exchange programms and internship agencies. The fee does not directly go to the university, as it does in many other regions, but it still is not comprehensible why such basic and mostly automatic services consume such an amount of money. The student body therefore represents the opinion that the "administrative contribution" should be abolished at once! We deny tuition fees in any form their right! This is especially true when costs for basics servies of the universities as abouve described are supposed to paid for by students.
Explanation of the semester ticket
The fees for the semester ticket are 163,61€ in the summerterm. 116,61 are for the Rhein-Main-Verkehrsbund, 9,30 for the Nordhessische Verkehrsverbung, 35,00€ for the DB Fernverkehr for using the IC/EC trains, 1,55 for the Verkehrsgemeinschaft Westfalen Süd and 1,30 for DB Rent for the "Call a bike" system. The semster ticket in Marburg is constructed as a solidarity model: Every student pays for it and also gets the possibility to use the ticket simply be register/reregister at the University of Marburg. Comparable tickets do not exist and without the semester ticket the usage of the public transport system would be much more expensive for some students. It can be seen as a social, ecological and practical achievment.
Since its introduction in 1990 the semster ticket has become more expensive. On the one hand this is because of the increasing prices for tickets which is not only because of the commercial thinking but also because the government wants it like this. The AStA Marburg is against the increasing price for the semster ticket and demands an alternative financing for the public transport system. On the other hand this is because an increasing number of students uses the public transport system.
The most increasing section of the semster ticket is the IC/EC semester ticket. At the moment it costs 35€ but will reach 50€ in the year 2018. During this Summerterm the AStA Marburg will do a survey on the social situation and mobility. The survey should also show if the students want to have the IC/EC ticket or not.
Explanation of the fees for the student body
8.70 € of your university fees per semester is for the student representative body. These organisation uses the money for the welfare of all students. On the one hand students in poverty have the possibility to claim the refund of the semster ticket fees. Furthermore, a free social and law counseling can be offered. On the other hand all activities of the students union, the 'AStA', and the student bodies of the faculties, the 'Fachschaften', are financed by these fee. These organisations e.g. arrange academic presenations on single faculties or for the whole university. They also supporting Student Initiativies in organizing and financing their actions. Over and above this the fee is needed to preserve the infrastucture of the student representative body and to pay expense allowances for the studentes who work for the student union. These people e.g. try to fight against pollitical plans of the demant high fees for tuition or for improvements of the general conditions of studying.