At the sitting held on 30 November, the Education Committee members considered the problems concerning the enrolment of university students (on the budget and self-financing).

Since the sitting lacked a decision-making quorum, the Committee members present agreed to consider the issues related to the student enrolment, and to hold a Committee sitting with the same agenda on Tuesday, 7 November 2010.

In a short discussion on the subject, Committee Chairman Zoran Sami stated that the occurrences related to the student enrolment should obviously not be viewed unilaterally. He informed the Committee members that the Committee had requested information on the problem from the Belgrade and Novi Sad Rectories, as well as the Ministry of Education. He added that the current events are the result of faulty regulations, reminding the Committee that after the Law on Higher Education was passed he proposed its amendment and that during the debates on the amendment to the Law he proposed an amendment that would specify the rules for the students’ enrolment in the next year of studies (formation of a single list ranking all the students of a faculty according to their points and grade point average). He also criticised the Ministry of Education for rejecting the amendment and declared that various irregularities noted in practice have triggered reactions from the students, and it would be good to have well-regulated rules of the game at the University so as to prevent possible manipulations.

The sitting was chaired by Committee Chairman Dr Zoran Sami.

The continuation of the sitting, held on 7 December 2010, was chaired by Committee Chairman Dr Zoran Sami and attended by Minister of Education Dr Zarko Obradovic and Assistant Minister Slobodan Jaukovic.

The Committee members considered the conclusions and proposals made by grammar schools educating talented students according to a special curriculum.

The Committee went on to debate the problems concerning the enrolment of university students (on the budget and self-financing). Minister of Education Dr Zarko Obradovic informed the Committee members that an agreement was reached with the students about the manner of financing viz. that the respective faculties should pay the tuition fees. Minister Obradovic said that the faculty would pay the tuition fees in full for students who had achieved 60 points, 70% of the tuition fees for ones who had achieved 54 and more points and 55% for students who had achieved 48 points. The City of Belgrade helped resolve the issue by providing scholarships from the city budget for 1000 materially endangered students. In addition, Minister Obradovic informed all present that this academic year the Ministry of Education would be financing 586 doctoral students for the first time. He added that the situation in higher education would be clearer once the state adopted an education strategy.

The Committee considered the information on the election of members of the National Council for Higher Education.

The Committee members also considered the information on the election of National Education Council members. The Committee formulated the Proposal of the Decision on the dismissal of Jadranka Dimov from duty as member of the National Education Council and forwarded it to the National Assembly for adoption.