Susan Smith, Staff ReporterTHE PROLIFERATION of private tertiary institutions in Jamaica is a sign that providing tertiary level education can be lucrative business.
Considered non-traditional financial entities, tertiary institutions turn over more than $3 billion in revenue per annum from tuition fees based on calculations made from the Students' Loan Bureau's operations.
As Dr. Trevor Hamilton, international consultant and managing director of Trevor Hamilton and Associates, puts it, "It must be viable for those who are promoting this service."
Moreover, with over 3,000 students paying an average undergraduate tuition fee of approximately $185,000 per annum, as is the case with the University College of the Caribbean, a more popular newcomer, the revenue potential of these institutions should not be underestimated.
"Private tertiary institutions know that unless they make money, they will not survive," said past president of the University of Technology, Dr. Alfred Sangster, in a brief interview with Sunday Business.
He said private tertiary institutions especially those affiliated with overseas programmes or institutions, focus on the high demand subject areas they know will be profitable. According to Dr. Hamilton, these areas are finance, health, technology, teaching and engineering.
The focus on the high de-mand subject areas by private institutions is a strategy to counteract the competitive tuition rates that national institutions offer because they are subsidised, explained Dr. Sangster. He acknowledged that tuition fees provide just one source of income for academic institutions.
To date, the University Council of Jamaica (UCJ), (the organisation in charge of registering tertiary institutions and accrediting tertiary programmes in Jamaica) has registered 26 private tertiary institutions and 22 government ones.
This represents a total enrolment of 30,000 students, says the UCJ. The Students' Loan Bureau says that one-sixth of this total received close to $500 million in loans paid out for tuition fees for the academic year 2003-2004.
QUANTUM MOVE
Dr. Hamilton describes the proliferation of private tertiary institutions, particularly those offering university level courses, as a quantum move.
"Compared to 10 years ago, the number of persons in Jamaica leaving high school for university has moved from two per cent to 11 per cent today," he said.
Referring to students, he said: "Education is a business, a service. People should learn they can invest in education and get very high returns."
Ruling out other expenses, a single private tertiary institution can earn as much as $700 million per annum from tuition fees, based on its student enrolment.
Sunday Business understands that the average amount a Jamaican student enrolled in a private institution may be asked to pay for an undergraduate degree programme is $150,000 per annum. The average amount asked for a Masters in Business Administration (MBA), by private tertiary institutions is $1.05 million (US$17,000) for the entire programme.
