The government-owned Banco de Reservas authorized the granting of a RD$40 million loan to the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo to be used to give staff employees a raise. At present more than 80% of the university’s government subsidy is used to pay for salaries of teachers and administrative staff. The increase was pending from the days of the strike that delayed the opening of classes at the university. The UASD was affected this term by more requests for admission than the physical space available. The university has an open admissions policy. Students are allowed to repeat courses several times. Note that the university is almost free for most Dominicans. These policies are affecting the quality of the instruction at the university, the first in the Americas.
