University of Glasgow students and staff protest GTA cuts outside university library

Students and staff at the University of Glasgow have joined  the UCU in protest against teaching budget cuts.

On Thursday 17th September, staff and students gathered on Library Hill as the Glasgow UCU held a demonstration against ongoing 62 per cent budget cuts targeting Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs) and Associate Tutors (ATs).

As The Glasgow Tab revealed in June 2026, the School of Social and Political Sciences saw its GTA budget cut from £536,000 to just £200,000.

Staff have reported reductions have led to rescinded contracts, leaving postgraduate researchers in financial distress, while increasing the workloads for permanent academic staff. A crisis which union members have described as having “the rug pulled from under their feet.”

Addressing the crowd, Rory Hamilton, representative for the UCU, criticised senior management over how cuts were communicated.

“They snuck this in the back door at the end of the last semester…We have contract extensions offered which were then rescinded,” he said.

“We are a core part of this university [….] When I go into the hub, I know that some of my colleagues are going to be leaving because they can’t afford to stay here because of the GTA positions. That breaks my heart. It’s not just colleagues – it’s friends.”

An International UCU Postgraduate Assistant also highlighted the impact on international researchers saying: “A university cannot call itself global while international students are treated as income first, and members of community second.”

“We are not numbers on a spreadsheet. We are the people who teach here,” they continued.

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Undergraduate students also joined alongside trade unionists to stand in solidarity with their tutors, arguing the cuts were “unnecessary,” warning that  removing GTA’s would directly negatively impact undergraduate education across campus.

Protesters highlighted the gap between executive pay and postgraduate incomes, pointing to Vice-Chancellor Andy Schofield £319,000 salary package. According to UCU estimates, the average postgraduate salary is £21,850, less than the vice-chancellor’s monthly earnings of approximately £26,500.

When asked for comment regarding the 62 per cent reduction, the University of Glasgow said: “The GTA budget for teaching within the school is being reduced because we have lower student numbers this year.”

However, union organisers argued teaching budget cuts reflect misaligned institutional priorities, pointing the UofG’s recent decision to join 34 UK institutions to form the new Defence Universities Alliance (DUA), supported by £182 million in government investment.

Protesters noted the expansion into defence partnerships follows an SRC referendum in which Glasgow Students voted in favour of ending university ties with the arms trade.

In a statement read by Hamilton Glasgow MSP, and former UofG student, Iris Duane said: “I’m horrified by the university’s decision to revoke GTA and AT contracts. These aren’t just a way to ‘balance books’ but a cut to both student and staff support. A cut to social mobility for our working class academics and a limit to innovation interconnected education.”

“The university must examine its priorities. Examine why it cannot find money to support its students but will find millions for investments in weapons of war […] This decision must be overturned.”

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