All of the rectors (university presidents) of the Consejo de Rectores (Council of Rectors) universities called for the higher education section of the 2027 Budget to be rejected, according to La Tercera. They made the call on Thursday before the Cuarta Subcomisión Mixta de Presupuesto, a joint congressional budget subcommittee chaired by Senator Yasna Provoste (DC), where the detailed debate on the ministry's budget began.
Education Minister María Paz Arzola opened the session by presenting the Executive's proposal. She highlighted its focus on learning and early childhood. "In a context of fiscal tightness, education remains a priority for the government," she said.
The rectors read the figures differently. Osvaldo Corrales, rector of the Universidad de Valparaíso and president of the Consejo de Rectoras y Rectores de las Universidades Chilenas (Cruch, which brings together Chile's traditional universities), explained that the 1% cut falls on four items: institutional funding for state universities, direct fiscal funding, the plan to strengthen state universities and performance-based core funding. In total, that comes to more than $36 billion less.
Core funding is the permanent money universities receive, something like a fixed salary, unlike the funds they win through competitive applications. This is the main point of disagreement. According to Corrales, the Fondo de Desarrollo Institucional (Institutional Development Fund) rises by about 52%, but that money is awarded through open competition among all institutions and does not make up for what is being taken from universities that have students on free tuition.
"The cuts being proposed for higher education would in fact weaken the system," Corrales warned. He added that the country will need more professionals and more knowledge, not less.
The Cruch also objected to a change to the Fondo Solidario de Crédito Universitario (FSCU), the older student loan system run by the universities. The bill lowers the share of the previous year's surplus that universities may use from 45% to 35%, and the share of accumulated surplus from 30% to 20%.
The council therefore asked for core funding to be restored to at least the amounts in the adjusted 2026 budget, and for universities to be allowed to use 100% of those surpluses.
Speaking for the Consorcio de Universidades del Estado (Cuech, the consortium of state universities), Marisol Durán, rector of the Universidad Tecnológica Metropolitana (UTEM), raised the issue of purchasing power. The 2027 budget builds on cuts already made during 2026 and does not account for this year's projected inflation of about 4.3%.
In everyday terms, if a budget item gets the same number of pesos as last year, it buys less in practice. It is like keeping the same salary while everything gets more expensive.
Durán also raised concerns about a cut to PASE, a program that supports students from vulnerable schools as they start university. According to the rector, it benefits young people from rural areas and regions across the country. She said state universities account for more than 40% of scientific output and that the bill "hits state universities hard."
A letter from Juan Carlos de la Llera, rector of the Pontificia Universidad Católica, was also read at the session. He is in Switzerland to receive an honorary doctorate. According to La Tercera, he too called for the section to be rejected. The source does not yet report Minister Arzola's response to these criticisms or when the subcommittee will vote.
