Students protest extra conferring charge

THOUSANDS of students voiced their opposition to being hit with extra charges on top of higher registration fees when they took to the streets of Cork opposing any return of college fees.

University College Cork had proposed a €80 charge to cover the cost of conferring ceremonies for graduates from next year, which UCC Students Union (UCCSU) president Eoin Hayes said is ridiculous.

“We all had to put up with a €600 increase in the registration fee to €1,500 already this year, and now they want €80 just to walk down a hall and collect a piece of paper,” he told a city centre protest organised by UCCSU and Cork Institute of Technology Students Union (CITSU).