"We are not going to send children to UDG and pay school fees of 1.500 euros"

A group of parents of high school graduates, who last week submitted documents and paid school fees at the Faculty of Political Sciences in vain because they were below the mark, sent a petition to the Ministry of Education asking that the expanded list decided by the Faculty Council be accepted as final.

After the FPN council made a decision to extend the list of accepted candidates for the majors of international relations and social policy and social work and admit 49 freshmen, the Ministry received a recommendation the day before enrollment to stick to the smaller number of students foreseen in the competition.

Parents and high school graduates gathered at the university and revoltedly demanded that the situation in which they found themselves "neither guilty nor liable" be resolved.

"All enrollment procedures were followed until the index was obtained, only for everything to be stopped by the Government's decision, before the response of the Board of Directors of the University of Montenegro, which is expected. We, the parents and our children, are not to blame for the collision or misunderstanding or bad communication. between the Government and the University, whose autonomy was not respected in this case. In this way, our children were denied the right to education, which is guaranteed in all countries of the world," reads the petition sent to Stijepović.

Do they benefit UDG?

They also noted that the Government limits the expansion of the list to two directions, which is not the case with private faculties, and thus creates an unequal position between private and state universities.

"I think that the faculty should be autonomous, and not that the Government and Minister Stijepović make such decisions because of UDG and that we now pay school fees of 1.500 euros each," Popović said.

Parents and matriculants gathered at the university and revoltedly demanded that the situation in which they found themselves "neither guilty nor liable" be resolved.

"The competition came out and my child was below the mark. After the list was extended for about 50 students, he fell into the international relations course. We took the index, paid the school fees - everything regularly, so that overnight the Minister of Education Stijepović or the Government would make a decision to cancel the number of students who were below the line and for the children to come to collect their documents on Monday," said Novka Popović, the mother of a graduate of the Podgorica high school.

Expectations that the list will be expanded, as in previous years, gave the graduates hope that they will still study what they want. However, parents claim that private universities this academic year had the support of the ministry, and that is why the expansion of the list was not accepted.

"I think that the faculty should be autonomous, and not that the Government and Minister Stijepović make such decisions because of UDG and that we now pay school fees of 1.500 euros each. I don't have that money and let Mr. Stijepović allocate it for me and I will send my child to school," said Popović.

The dean asks for an exception

The University of Montenegro said that on July 10 they will have an official position regarding the problem at the FPN

"I am asking the rector's office to call a meeting because they have four more working days to decide. This faculty, as we have received information, has the capacity for an even larger number of students than is on the extended list. We appeal to them not to leave our children to hang out. If they are not those admitted lose a year," said Milenko Begović from Nikšić.

The parents claim that they were informed too late that their children were not admitted to the university and that on the last day they were in a situation where they were considering other options where they could submit the documents.

The Faculty of Political Sciences unofficially told "Vijesti" that they asked the Ministry to make an exception for this study year and to admit 49 students to two courses, because they are exceptionally high-quality candidates. As they said, they hope that together with the rector, they will appeal to enroll the high school graduates who were on the extended list, because they are light bearers and very good students.

The University of Montenegro said that on July 10 they will have an official position regarding the problem at the FPN.

Request to the minister to give Anida Dedeić a chance

The Association of Youth with Handicap (UMHCG) sent a request to the Minister of Education, Slavoljub Stijepović, to recommend the Faculty of Applied Physiotherapy in Igalo to enable the enrollment of Anida Dedeić and thereby implement an affirmative action for the inclusion of people with disabilities in the regular education system.

UMHCG states that in Montenegro, although inclusive education has been implemented for many years, conditions have not been created for an equal position and treatment of certain categories of citizens, such as persons with disabilities.

It is added that recently there have been efforts by the disabled themselves to get an education and achieve a level of higher education.

"In support of this fact, we point out that there are currently around 50 students with disabilities studying in Montenegro, which is an increase of 47 students compared to the year 2000," the statement says, reports the MINA agency.

Dedeić, a member of the UMHCG, as they state, was not allowed to study with 45 candidates from the Faculty's credit list, because the Ministry turned to the University of Montenegro and individual Faculties to reduce the number of places for enrollment. UMHCG believes that the recommendation to the Faculty, apart from affirmative action, would also comply with the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.