The University of West Bohemia in Pilsen (ZČU) is registering a higher interest in accommodation in the dormitories this year. The university with 11,000 students has ten buildings with 2568 beds. Dormitory prices have increased by approximately ten percent year-on-year since July, from CZK 190 to 490 per month per bed, depending on the type of room. It was inevitable due to the increase in energy prices, according to ZČU spokeswoman Šárka Stará. Last September, ZČU raised prices by inflation.
“Because we did not want to change the accommodation conditions for students during the academic year, we did not proceed with increasing the tuition fees until the new year 2022/2023,” the spokeswoman said. Accommodation currently costs from CZK 2,860 per month for a four-bed room with shared bathroom facilities to CZK 4,990 for a single-bed room with its own toilet and bathroom in the newly renovated Máchova 20 dormitory.
“The interest in accommodation in dormitories has increased this year, mainly due to the increase in the price of subletting by private accommodation providers. It is clear that living in a dormitory is more advantageous for students despite the increase in dormitory fees,” said Stará. ZČU expects that the dormitory capacity will be completely filled, including Máchova 20 with 391 beds, which could not be used in the last two years due to reconstruction.
“Dormitory stays cheaper. And in the time of covid, when students had to move out of the dormitories during the transition to distance learning, the universities waived the dormitory fees. Students know that if they are in the dorm and something happens, the university will not leave them in the lurch.” said ZČU bursar Petr Hofman.
According to Stará, the increased interest is also reflected in the fact that students reserve rooms earlier. “For example, at the renovated dormitory Máchova 20, the beds intended for first-year students, approximately 200 out of a total of 391, were booked within 40 minutes of the start of reservations,” she said.
The complete reconstruction of Máchovy 20, which was built in 1964, cost CZK 106 million without tax, 60 percent of which was covered by subsidies from the Ministry of Education. The dormitory opposite Borské Park now offers accommodation only in single and double rooms, which have long been the most popular, said Petr Jícha, director of the Dormitory and Canteen Administration of ZČU, at the May approval.
The university also plans to renovate the Baarova 36 secondary dormitory with 382 beds, which was built in 1966. But it must also receive a state subsidy. He will seek it from the program for the development of university dormitories and canteens, which was announced by the Ministry of Education in July with a deadline of the end of November. Jana Katauerová from the ministry commented in May that CZK 1.5 billion will be distributed. “ZCU assured me that it is fully prepared, so I don’t see any problem,” she said. She added, however, that she expects a very strong demand from universities, because during the covid-19 pandemic, many construction events did not take place.
ZČU will now begin the reconstruction of the risers and the installation of blinds in the L2 building of the Bolevecká dormitory. As every year in the summer, she carried out repairs and equipment innovations in part of the student apartments. The linoleum was replaced on Bolevecká and Borská, and the university had building A2 painted on Borská.
Source: ZČU and CTK
