Europeans a buddy of mine was trying to tell me university was free for europeans:
 

is this true?

i told him there is no way in hell.

where are you from? and is it free?

Search Google for 'Open University' :thumbsup

it is in most european countries. Dot really know of a single on that cost money. Education are payed by our tax, that is the reason its free

your friend was fucking with you....

UK and yeah we have to pay

like around $15k a year i think

It has been free in Germany, but most Universities charge an annual fee of € 1,200.00 since 2006/2007. There are a few for free left.

ok thanks for the info guys, keep it coming!

What? It's £3,000 (approx. $6,000) per year here in the UK. It's a complete fucking joke.

If you consider paying taxes out of your ass free, then I guess it's free. :)

However, I guess it's certainly cheaper than in Canada, where you still pay taxes out of your ass AND tuition fees. :)

Ok so far UK is NOT FREE, what other countires are NOT FREE?

what countries ARE FREE?

in Romania first 25% places are free, the rest payed
I finished Electronics in 2000 it was absolutely free (all places)

wtf are you talking about OPEN UNIVERSITY has nothing to do with free.

welll here in the uk we dont have to pay for college...but we do for university

Sweden
Germany (was when I was there in 2004, but it appears that changed)
Denmark
Norway (at least that was when I was there 2001)

The universities are not for free but are cheaper :thumbsup

yea but in them nordic countries the tax is rediculous, theres a reason norway has the highest standard of living in the whole world...

Why, you finally want to get an education .... ?

More or less free here in Czech Rep.

Yes it;s true. My cousin in Holland is in Uni and it's free.

It can be free, but it depends also on your scores in your whole schooling carreer.

Sebs

My sisters Husband went to school in Sweden and got an undergrad, masters and an MBA for free. So no your friend wasn't shitting you. But I guess it does depend on the country. Welcome to Socialism.

Because they have the mad oil money

Trust me, the Open University is not free.

It's amazing what you can afford to do when you are not busy invading countries.

the UK used to be more or less free but that changed over the past decade

As my past tuition bills will testify.

nothing is free in any country. you pay for it in taxes.

It's E1500/yr here, but then again the standard student govt allowance is E220/mo. Naturally taxes is how it's paid for.

Everyone is saying it costs money in the UK. Those who say that are English now doubt and very ignorant. The UK isn't just scummy England. Scotland is unfortunately part of that and yes its free here to go to College or University.

Thats why a lot of English students come up here to Study, coz its free.

Here in Denmark most education is free while studying you get about $900 a month from the government to cover expenses.
Doesn't matter if its a 2 year education or 7 years of medical school.

Not true. The govt (i.e. the tax payer) carries most of the cost.

When Tony Blair went to University not only was it free in the UK, but students also got a grant (not a loan) for living and accomodation expenses.

what he said...

Oh you have to pay for book expenses (buying your own books) when attending University which can be $2-3K a year.

that has nothing to do with the topic, everyone pays taxes everywhere, the issue is not taxes it is if schooling is free.

stick to the subject and stop trying to sound smart.

For proof see 'The Young Ones'

Yes Im' from France. I studied Law and I had to pay only $500 the year. However Business School are not free..I had to pay to get my Masters Degree. But yes it is true..Education is "Free" in Europe. :thumbsup

why people feel the need to get away from the base topic?

if you are a student and go to school is it free for you?

i am not talking about the million other circumstances on why is it free.

"paying only $500" is not free that is still an expense.

If you are a Student in Scotland its free! Bottom line! Most even get a bursary to help them throughout the year.

actually my university degree didn't cost me a cent besides some hundred euros for books in 2,5 years

The $500 were just for fees, insurance..things like that !!!! Compare to the US ! $500 a year is nothing.

basically the consensus i get from this thread is that some places are free while other are not.

the statement "school is free in europe" is way to broad and thus incorrect.

why are you comparing the the USA? i dont even live in the USA, nor is any part of this topic based on the USA.

why do you feel the need to bring up the USA when they have nothing to do with the topic?

Try calling an at home doctor in some places in europe and you'll have one arrive no problem. Call a plumber and your looking at least 2 weeks. If peopple can get free university, why not go into a high viewed profession like a doctor or lawyer. Plumbers etc have it made there..

Well seeing as 'Europe' isn't one country is that really all that shocking? School is free in some parts of Europe so unless the statement you are trying to disprove stated 'in all of Europe' it is not an incorrect statement.

Thing is, if you ask a mainland European they'll probably forget the UK is unfortunately part of Europe, and so likely say it's free; if you ask someone from the UK they'll likely forget about Scotland (as I did and Ross pointed out, although that'll teach you Scot's to hate me for actually spending my money on a holiday there...) and say it costs money.

:1orglaugh:1orglaugh

School can NEVER be free, countries all spend big money to educate their people.

It's a demagogic thread.

Danish example:
"The expenditure on higher education corresponded to 1.8% of the GDP in Denmark, as opposed to an average in the OECD of 1.3%"
"Denmark spends the highest proportion of GDP on education of any EU member state."

Education cost is measured in percentage of the country GDP. It's a non-sense to generalize, there are too many schools, too many countries, too many personal cases. You can get grants, you can pay to enter a good business school, u can do this and that, and what not.

it basically balances out - the countries where its free are much more expensive than the countries where it isn't free so I'd say fees + living expenses at least 25k a year and in some countries much much more. I don't think anybody can live a "normal" life with less than 4k a month in Norway for example...