In 2025, students in arts, business and law courses pay nearly A$17,000 for a year of university study. This means it costs more than $50,000 for a three-year degree.
University leaders have been blaming these high fees for lower enrolments. On Wednesday, Universities Australia chair and Griffith University Vice-Chancellor Carolyn Evans told the National Press Club, recent fee increases are “inherently unfair” and are leading to a decline in undergraduate enrolments.
Something major has certainly happened to student demand in recent years. University applications data to 2024 and new bachelor degree enrolment data to 2023 both suggest interest in higher education has been down to levels last seen in the early 2010s.
