George Guthrie, and Irie Schimanski- Maori and general student representatives of the New Zealand College of Clinical Psychology, are lobbying Government to change the rules/criteria around student loans. Having a cap on student loans creates a financial barrier for those wanting train as clinical psychologists, and that disproportionately impacts Māori students, five psychology interns say. The interns have written to the Minister of Education, Chris Hipkins, asking for the seven Equivalent Full-Time Student (EFTS) limit for student loans to be removed for clinical psychology students. READ MORE:* New Zealand's psychological crisis putting lives at risk* Savings, scholarships and salary: How three people paid off their student loans* A decade of neglected student loans sees 8280 people owe $115 millionOf the current batch of psychology interns, 8.2 per cent are Māori, psychology intern Irie Schimanski, (Te Atiawa, Ngāi Tahu), said. ‘’Any changes to limits on student loan borrowing would need to be made as part of a Budget process.’’

Source: Stuff August 01, 2021 17:00 UTC