Otago just a Cessna.
Students have slammed Auckland University after it was revealed the university spent $24 million on travel for academic and general staff in the last financial year.
That figure dwarfs the spending of any other tertiary institution in New Zealand, with Massey University spending $11 million and Victoria University $9 million.
Students have expressed dismay at the figure, with Auckland University Students’ Association President Joe McCrory telling One News that “it's a bit unfair for students who are struggling to enter university to see that a lot is being spent on conferences and travel".
Particularly under fire was the University’s policy for reimbursing staff for the purchase of alcohol, although the University defended the practice, saying that alcohol was only reimbursed when consumed with meals and in moderation. The University also added that flights must be economy class and accommodation “modest”.
The University of Otago’s spending on travel seems very ‘modest’ by comparison to Auckland’s, with the University spending just $8.4 million in the last fiscal year, a mere third of the Auckland total.
A Postgraduate Humanities student told Critic that the Division offered support for each student to travel to one international conference during their PhD tenure, but that the process for accessing funding was carefully controlled and monitored. “It is a sensible and robust system that I would not characterise as excessive or an inappropriate use of student funds. I did, however, get to keep my airpoints.”
Better scratch that Cessna order then.
Auckland University has enough airpoints to buy 747.
