Ontario’s tuition fees highest in the country, says new report

Undergraduate tuition and compulsory fees have tripled since 1993, an increase well above inflation, which rose by only 48.71 per cent.

Thestar.com
Sept. 8, 2015
By Tara Deschamps

When Stephanie Flores-Small heads back to York University for her second year in the school’s children’s studies program on Thursday, there won’t be any first-day jitters, but there will be plenty of anxiety about the cost of her classes.

The Toronto student says her tuition averages about $7,400 a year, and though she lives at home and works at a part-time bank job to cover it, the skyrocketing cost of education is never easy to stomach, especially when her boyfriend in Prince Edward Island only pays $3,000 a year.

Unfortunately for Flores-Small, her $7,400 tuition won’t be shrinking any time soon either, says a new report, estimating that undergraduate tuition and compulsory fees in Ontario will hit as much as $9,541 by 2018.

The report from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) said those fees have tripled since 1993, rising 248 per cent in Ontario alone.

That’s an increase that is well above inflation, which only rose by 48.71 per cent between 1993 and this year.

It’s hurt students in Ontario the most because they have the highest tuition fees in the country, the report revealed.

Students in Newfoundland, however, have gotten a break, only having to shell out $2,857 a year. Those in Quebec and Manitoba lag behind Newfoundland with low rates, while others in Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan trail Ontario and boast high fees.

That patchwork across the country is alarming, said CCPA director Erika Shaker, because it could result in students making their university choices based on what province has the most affordable tuition.

For those who brace themselves and chose to take on an education in a province with some of the highest fees, Shaker said there is an increased risk of debt.

“We are all impacted by the financial stability that a generation will have to live under if they have to live in those conditions,” she said.

She placed the blame for the steady tuition increases on the low rates of public investment targeted towards university operating costs.

As a result, universities are placing the burden of funding the education system on students.
Shaker called it a “short-sighted approach.”

Rajean Hoilett, a Canadian Federation of Students chairperson, agreed.

“I think students in Ontario need to see a government that will commit to reducing tuition fees and introduce policies like those in Newfoundland that create grants instead of loans,” he said.

The move made Newfoundland the first province to replace blanket loans with needs-based grants.

Instead of following suit, Ontario introduced a 30 per cent tuition cut for undergraduates whose parents make $160,000 or less each year, but many have complained that it is not available to students who have been out of high school for more than five years and those who are attending school part-time.

Even those who have benefitted from the cut have told Hoilett that because of tuition, “they find it difficult to contribute to society, buy a house or a car and start a family.”

“We have heard sad stories from students turning to the food bank because they are struggling to afford rent, tuition and textbook costs on top of paying for lunch,” said Hoilett.

They’re taking on second and third jobs, constantly seeking bursaries and doing whatever they can to save a few pennies.

For Flores-Small, that means meaning watching friends jet off to Cuba two or three times a year, while she stays home and watches her wallet.

“I don’t get to have as much fun as my friends do. I can’t do it all like they can,” she said. “It’s hard.”

After earning a college degree in business and realizing it “felt like a waste,” Flores Small says she wishes tuition was lower, but most of all she just hopes this degree is worth it.

TUITION SOARS ABOVE OTHER COSTS

The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives says Ontario tuition has climbed by 248 per cent since 1993. From a case of beer to a box of Kraft Dinner, here’s how the cost of other student staples changed over the same period.

Honda Civic

1993: $10,000
2015: $15,750
57.5% increase

Source: Toronto Star archives, Honda Canada

Average home

1993: $206,490
2015: $602,607
191.8% increase

Source: Toronto Real Estate Board

Case of beer (24):

1993: $26.40
2015: $36.95, Molson Coors Light
39.9% increase

Source: Beer Canada

Box of Kraft Dinner:

1993: 69 cents
2015: $1.79
159.4% increase

Source: Toronto Star archives and No Frills

Gas

1993: 54.8/litre
2015: 106.9/litre
95% increase

Source: CAA

Kellogg’s Cornflakes (675 g box):

1993: $2.39
2015: $4.79
100.4% increase

Source: Toronto Star archives and No Frills

Mr. Noodles noodles in a cup:

1993: 79 cents
2015: $1.29
63.2% increase

Source: Toronto Star archives and No Frills