As a university student, almost by default, I absolutely endorse affordable post-secondary tuition, but I'm also interested in looking at the big picture. The province Quebec enjoys some of the lowest costs of living in the country, as well as the lowest tuition, in spite of playing host to Canada's most esteemed university. I live in British Columbia, a province that boasts the most expensive postal codes in Canada and has the highest costs of loving. Students here pay an average of $4852 per year whereas Quebec students pay an average of $2519 per year. There are of course a myriad of factors to consider, but while I endorse affordable education, I've been keeping a close watch on the protests in Quebec, wondering what it is that the post-secondary students there are hoping to accomplish.
While I realized that an absurd amount of students are crippled with debt at the end of their education, there are also a significant amount of students who come out on the other side relatively unscathed because they worked through their degree, rather then solely depend on the charity of the government and parents. If current and prospective students spent a little more time on how to find scholarships, and less time on demanding lower tuition rates in a province that already enjoys affordable tuition, the government might pour a little more money into grants, scholarships and bursaries.
On the flip side, this is Canada, and like our American neighbours, we enjoy the freedom of speech, and the freedom to protest, and if you want change, you have to make it happen. The question at the end of the day, at least in regards to this issue, is how do we put a price tag on our post-secondary education?
