The new Ontario post-secondary student funding regime announced on Feb. 25 arguably puts the province ahead of much of Canada in terms of how much its students can receive in grants.
The Ontario Student Grant (OSG) will cover the average cost of university or college tuition for students who come from families with an annual income of $50,000 or less. The progressive funding method will allow students from families with annual income at $83,000 or less will also be able to have most of their tuition costs covered.
Many students will have to pay for student loans, but the OSG can cover up to all post-secondary fees for low-income students living at home. Here’s what students in other provinces think about Ontario’s move to tuition grants.
British Columbia
Jenelle Davies, secretary and treasurer of the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) – British Columbia, said she is excited the OSG could push Christy Clark’s Liberal government to follow suit.
The B.C. government operates a student loan system similar to OSAP, where interest doesn’t begin until six months after graduation.
There are no bursaries available via the province, although it does provide grants which are directly applied to pay off provincial student loans. The interest rate on student loans in BC is 2.5 per cent, compared to 1 per cent in Ontario.
“Our government has done absolutely nothing to reduce student debt in the province,” Davis said. “We have the highest interest rate, we have no provincial grants program, and we have some of the highest costs of living in our cities.”
However, Davies said she sees some flaws with the OSG, including how “average” tuition fee is calculated, and why students are tied to their parents’ income.
Some student advocates in Ontario have expressed concern over the fact the province’s tuition fee framework is up for revision next year and will likely lead to higher tuition rates. Skeptics have also noted some students don’t receive support from high-earning parents.
“We get into this conversation of how much do parents have to contribute,” Davis said. “What if they can’t? What is the income level where you can start saving for your child’s education? Is it the parents’ responsibility to do so? I think that’s a bigger conversation the public needs to have.”
Manitoba
Michael Barkman, chairperson of CFS – Manitoba, said he views Ontario’s move to large grants for students from low-income families as something all students in Canada should celebrate.
“Across the country, we’ve been talking about ‘grants, not loans’ for quite some time,” he explained. “So to see that go through as a victory in our largest province was met with a lot of excitement here in Manitoba.”
According to Statistics Canada data for the 2014-15 year, students in Ontario pay the highest on average undergraduate tuition fees at $7,539. In comparison, Manitoba has one of the lowest at $3,887.
Along with a student loan system, the Manitoba government also provides grants of up to $3,000 annually for students from lower-income families and $1,200 for students from middle-income families. It also provides a bursary to be applied directly to debt from student loans.
Barkman said the provincial government has made it a priority over the past 15 years to provide more grants and bursaries for students.
With an upcoming provincial election, he said the CFS has been calling for all parties to ensure they include accessibility to education within their platforms.
However, he said what he’d really like to see is a national action plan, similar to the way the federal government provides standards for healthcare despite it falling under provincial jurisdiction.
“There’s so much discrepancy across the provinces in terms of how are people accessing their education,” he said. “We know that education is a pillar of our society, it’s a pillar of our culture and it’s also a pillar of our strong economy, so we need to see upfront access for student and potential students across the country.”
Quebec
Emily Boytinck, vice-president of the Students’ Society of McGill University, said she isn’t sure a national action plan would work in her province, as Quebec’s fees are already lower on average than most other provinces.
“Given that the rest of the country is generally behind the province, it probably wouldn’t result in immediate increases in affordability of education in Quebec,” she said.
Although without a tuition freeze like Alberta or Newfoundland, Quebec has the second-highest tuition fees in Canada, with the average pegged at $2,743. On top of the relatively low costs, Quebec also provides loans and bursaries to low-income students similar to OSAP and work/study programs at various schools.
Boytinck added the historic differences between Quebec and the rest of Canada means some Quebecers may not be in favour of a national plan for tuition.
She said nonetheless, tuition is an idea Quebec students would like to see happen in the province through increased public financing.
“A big demand of the Quebec student movement is free, high quality public education for everyone, and we fully stand by that demand and hope the province will listen to that,” she said.
