A ROW over graduation fees at a leading Scottish university has sparked calls for the charges to be scrapped.

Student leaders said the £50 fees currently charged by many institutions should be abolished.

The call from student body NUS Scotland came after an anatomy student at Glasgow University took to social media platform Twitter to raise concerns over graduation charges.

Fiona Ballantyne, 32, wrote: “£50 to graduate from Glasgow University and if I want to go to the ceremony, that’s £42 as well for gown hire. Guess I won’t be graduating then. I’d also like to point out that Edinburgh University has no fee.”

Read more: Universities challenged on graduation fees

Responding to the tweet, lawyer Aamer Anwar, the university rector, said: “It is really sad that after studying so hard our students should not be able to graduate because of the cost.”

He added: “Most students dream of the day they will graduate, despite all the struggles they have faced along the way. To then find out that you can’t graduate because of the cost really is a kick in the teeth.

“Graduation day is supposed to be about celebration and not treating students as a cash cow. As for the gown company, who are a private firm, we need to have a look at why they need to charge so much for only a few hours hire.”

A spokeswoman for Glasgow University said officials had already decided to abolish graduation fees in future years, with a student committee currently looking at bringing it forward to the current year.

She added: “We shall be in a position to make an announcement on this in the near future. Gown hire is provided by an external company and it is up to individual students whether they choose to pay for this cost.”

Later, Ms Ballantyne said there was no reason why the university couldn’t scrap fees this year.

She said: “While some may complain that we already get free tuition and that £50 is so little to pay, it is a vast sum of money for those of us who are mature students and have other commitments.

“Universities push for inclusiveness, and yet still fail to help those from low income backgrounds. Hopefully they make the right decision and more people get to celebrate their achievements.”

The concerns were backed by Jodie Waite, vice president of NUS Scotland, who said: “After years of hard-work and mounting student debt, graduation should be the big pay-off, not the big pay-out and every university should follow the lead of those who’ve already scrapped graduation charges.

“As the Scottish education sector strives to widen access to higher education, it can’t be right that graduation is based on the ability to pay.

“Whether that’s ensuring students have financial support to remain in education, or overcoming the financial barriers they might face in graduating, graduation must be accessible to every student.”

While not all universities charge students to graduate many do with a typical fee being £45 or £50 plus £50 to hire a graduation gown.

The costs usually cover a graduation certificate, a programme of the day’s events as well as membership to an alumni society and are usually compulsory. Some universities charge a lower fee if students do not attend in person.

Read more: Universities challenged on graduation fees 

A spokesman for Universities Scotland said: “Where there are costs associated with graduations, universities will be as transparent as possible about what they are and whether they are optional.

“Where possible, universities make hardship funds available to support students that require it.”

In 2014, universities were warned that they risk breaching consumer protection law by preventing students from graduating because of debts.

The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) said around three-quarters of UK universities had terms and conditions that could stop students graduating if they owe non-tuition fee debts, such as those for university accommodation, library fines or childcare services.

The watchdog said the “blanket use” of academic sanctions in such cases, regardless of the circumstances, could breach consumer protection law.