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Salient. Victoria University Student Newspaper. Volume 39, Number 17, July 19, 1976.

Editorial

Editorial

Friday's march for a bursary cost-of-living adjustment is only the first step in what looks like shaping up to be a long hard struggle.

Last year it was simply a matter of walking down town to Parliament Buildings, putting on a bold face, and Phil's your uncle - one standard tertiary bursary!

This year the Government is counting on students being content with last year's handout and having been sucked in with the "we've all got to tighten our belts" propaganda.

Don't apologise for asking for a decent living wage instead of the miserable handout we get every election year. Fulltime students have as much right to a share in the wealth of this country as anyone else and if everyone in New Zealand is to have the opportunity of full time university education then bursary levels must keep up with the cost-of-living.

At the moment two-thirds of Victoria students receiving bursary assistance are expected to live on $13 a week, while most are paying $20 a week for rent and food. Many full time students don't even receive the token $13, and so cannot apply for a hardship allowance. Doctorate students (apart from the few who are on fellowships and study awards) get no assistance and because of the size of their workload have very little time to earn large sums during the holidays.

Problems of assessment and workload - everyday encounters at this university - are intricately lied in with bursary levels. If students aren't receiving enough to live on, they either take on a part-time job or stop eating. In both cases their work and health suffers, and academic pressure rises as they struggle to gain enough units to retain their bursaries, which haven't risen since last election year.

You may not be caught in this treadmill. Many students are. March on Friday to prevent it catching up with you.

— John Ryall