Argentina’s universities have become particularly attractive to students from Chile and Colombia, both of which have been plagued by high tuition fees. With the scathingly sarcastic title “Argentina: a generous country”, Lanata lambasted foreign students as freeloaders, mooching off Argentina’s public funds to the tune of, by his calculations, $360m (pesos) per year. On a regional level, Argentina’s universities perform quite well; the UBA consistently places at the top of rankings of Latin American universities. And, as is the case with Germany, free tuition coincides with lower inequality rates in Argentina relative to other countries in the region. Argentina’s background, as a country that has traditionally welcomed and accommodated foreign students, is a powerful statement about this identity; putting up obstacles to foreign students wishing to study here would be a grave threat to it.

Source: The Argentina Independent November 04, 2016 17:06 UTC