Exactly this. Free shouldn't be read as available to everyone. It should in my mind be read as in 'free, after you have passed the entrance exams'. At least thi

Exactly this. Free shouldn't be read as available to everyone. It should in my mind be read as in 'free, after you have passed the entrance exams'. At least this is how it at least used to be in Nordic colleges. And like parent pointed out, for some programs it may be only ~5% of applicants that get in. I guess alternative would be accepted almost everyone, but then during first three years or so, ruthlessly remove students from programs based on test scores etc.