Responding to claims that it had not notified students of the move ahead of time, it said these were still subsidised fees and “much cheaper” than the commercial rate for internet services.
“The increase in fees meant was ICT fees, not tuition fees, and the last time it was raised was for the 2011/2012 intake,” the UM corporate communication division said in a statement sighted by FMT.
“The increase is RM100 a year (RM50 per semester or RM8.30 a month for local students). It is now RM600 a year for international students, which works out to an increase of RM300 yearly,” it added.
It said the UM management had distributed all related documents on the increase to the student council and posted them in the public domain.
A meeting was also held with student representatives from various societies, including the presidents of the College Action Committee, to explain the matter, it added.
Earlier this month, a group of students from the university protested against the fee hike, saying there was no prior notice or attempt to explain to students.
Suara Siswa, representing students from various faculties, said there had been a sudden hike of RM50 for local students and up to RM3,000 for foreign students.
They claimed UM had not responded to their complaints or acted on a memorandum submitted with the signatures of over 6,000 individuals.
In its statement, UM listed the various IT services it provides for students, including subscriptions to software such as Microsoft365, online teaching and learning sites, and cyber security server maintenance.
“WiFi service here, for example, averages from 20MBps up to 200MBps, while internet speeds are up to 600MBps,” it said, adding that UM does not impose any limits on data usage and access.
“Our students can also use up to three devices simultaneously for each person for access to the internet.”
Education Minister Maszlee Malik recently said he would hold discussions with the university on the matter, adding however that it has autonomy over decisions on tuition fees.