People with student loans must repay 12c in the dollar once they start earning $19,136, less than 60% of the annual salary for a minimum wage earner.
Replace it with an Australian-style progressive repayment system so that those on lower incomes pay less and can have enough take home pay to survive.
4. Restore postgraduate allowances. The cut has hurt New Zealanders who should be supported to research and innovate, and is especially significant as teaching qualifications shift to Masters level
5. Raise the parental income threshold on Student Allowance. Only 30% of student have access to the Allowance. Raise the threshold to a reasonable rate so fewer students graduate with unmanageable debt.
6. Restore the national significance exceptions on Student Allowance. Make an exception to the 200-week limit on Allowances, by restoring a category of qualifications of national significance. This would support student pursuing qualifications such as medicine, optometry, dentistry and veterinary science.
7. Restore full access for over-40s to Student Allowances and Allowances and Loans for over-65s. Many New Zealanders enter tertiary education later in life to upskill and retrain. Don’t discriminate against them purely because of their age.
8. Lift the course-related costs loan cap. This has been frozen at $1000 since 1993. Students are getting into bank and credit card debt just to pay for basics like upfront hall costs and necessary educational materials.
NZUSA is the national voice of students in tertiary education. The organisation is governed by students’ associations from universities and polytechnics around the country.
ENDS