Should Canada give every student who qualifies the opportunity to attend university? Can the knowledge economy flourish without affordable post-secondary education?
For employers, and HR departments tasked with supplying talent, the cost of an education should be a concern. That cost may soon prevent a generation of children from low- and middle-income families from attending university.
An economic paper released last month by the TD bank Financial Group puts future university costs for a child born today at $125,000. This represents four years’ tuition, living expenses and inflation for a student attending school away from home. (The cost drops by 40 per cent for Canadians who can stay at home while pursuing higher education.) In more concrete terms, parents of children born today will have to save $200 to $300 every month for 18 years if a child is to attend school — something that is beyond the budgets of most Canadians. Anyone hoping to send more than one child to university may never be able to afford to do so.
The Canadian Federation of Students, noting tuition has increased at six times the rate of inflation annually for the last decade, says students from low- and middle-income families are already less than half as likely as other Canadians to access post-secondary education. Increasing tuition fees are widening that gap.
British Columbia, Alberta, Nova Scotia, Ontario and New Brunswick have been identified by the federation as provinces that “refuse to take measures to guarantee that students from all backgrounds can attain a degree.”
Paying for graduate school becomes even more difficult, pushing MBA education to a point where only the financial elite need apply.
The federation also points out Ottawa’s efforts to develop an innovation strategy to create a more skilled and knowledgeable workforce are being undermined by high tuition fees.
Access to higher education is under threat, and this has serious consequences for Canada’s labour force.
If governments refuse to ensure access to universities through direct funding that allows institutions to keep tuition costs down, then Ottawa and the provinces will have to develop wide-ranging student loan programs to make education accessible. Either way, dollars will have to be found if Canada’s youth are to have an opportunity to develop the talents sorely needed by companies competing on a global stage.
The business community can either use its lobbying power to pressure governments to pay for the education that creates a skilled workforce or start putting away funds for the creation of corporate scholarship programs. Without the former, the latter will be the only way to ensure a supply of talent for the knowledge economy.
For employers, and HR departments tasked with supplying talent, the cost of an education should be a concern. That cost may soon prevent a generation of children from low- and middle-income families from attending university.
An economic paper released last month by the TD bank Financial Group puts future university costs for a child born today at $125,000. This represents four years’ tuition, living expenses and inflation for a student attending school away from home. (The cost drops by 40 per cent for Canadians who can stay at home while pursuing higher education.) In more concrete terms, parents of children born today will have to save $200 to $300 every month for 18 years if a child is to attend school — something that is beyond the budgets of most Canadians. Anyone hoping to send more than one child to university may never be able to afford to do so.
The Canadian Federation of Students, noting tuition has increased at six times the rate of inflation annually for the last decade, says students from low- and middle-income families are already less than half as likely as other Canadians to access post-secondary education. Increasing tuition fees are widening that gap.
British Columbia, Alberta, Nova Scotia, Ontario and New Brunswick have been identified by the federation as provinces that “refuse to take measures to guarantee that students from all backgrounds can attain a degree.”
Paying for graduate school becomes even more difficult, pushing MBA education to a point where only the financial elite need apply.
The federation also points out Ottawa’s efforts to develop an innovation strategy to create a more skilled and knowledgeable workforce are being undermined by high tuition fees.
Access to higher education is under threat, and this has serious consequences for Canada’s labour force.
If governments refuse to ensure access to universities through direct funding that allows institutions to keep tuition costs down, then Ottawa and the provinces will have to develop wide-ranging student loan programs to make education accessible. Either way, dollars will have to be found if Canada’s youth are to have an opportunity to develop the talents sorely needed by companies competing on a global stage.
The business community can either use its lobbying power to pressure governments to pay for the education that creates a skilled workforce or start putting away funds for the creation of corporate scholarship programs. Without the former, the latter will be the only way to ensure a supply of talent for the knowledge economy.
