Students battle to save politics courses

The Bristol-based university could axe all five of its courses in politics, international relations and human rights at a meeting on March 1 - giving staff and students just two weeks' notice.

The university dropped the bombshell in a letter to students sent last Wednesday, saying the academic board was advising vice-chancellor Steve West on the closures following "an extensive review."

Executive dean Alex Gilkison said that the university would still support individual students to complete their degrees.

But critics told the Morning Star the cuts were "class war." Formerly known as Bristol Poly-technic, the university's high proportion of working-class backgrounds made the department a symbol of aspiration.

Official UniStats rank course quality at more than 90 per cent, while a 25 per cent drop in enrolments in recent years follows declining enrolments nationwide in the wake of tuition fee hikes.

One student organiser who did not wish to be named said the campaign had already amassed broad support, from ultra-leftist groups to the local branch of Conservative Future.

But the campaign itself was far from apolitical, they said.

"We're very conscious that this comes from an ideological position for the vice-chancellor: they don't want us learning academia, they want us stocking shelves. It's class war," they said.

The university's student president Emmanuel Okon said the student union (UWESU) was proud to be a part of the campaign and would do everything possible to ensure the student voice was heard loud and clear.

"UWESU has made sure its position to UWE is very clear. No cuts to university courses."

The student union's petition to save the courses had amassed more than 600 signatures at the time of writing.

The university did not respond to requests for comment.

UWE's battle came as author Noam Chomsky threw his weight behind student activists fighting privatisation at the University of Sussex.

The acclaimed intellectual is to give a lecture via Skype in support of Occupy Sussex, which has held the university's Bramber House conference centre since February 8 to protest against the outsourcing of 235 jobs in non-teaching positions.