Good news for the province's university and college students today.
The Ontario government says students at every publicly-assisted college and university will see their tuition rates go down by 10 per cent thanks to a province-wide tuition rate reduction.
“We believe that if you’ve got the grades, you deserve access to affordable postsecondary education,” said Merrilee Fullerton, Minister of Training, Colleges, and Universities. “By lowering tuition across the entire province, our Government is ensuring that all qualified Ontario students will have more affordable access to high-quality skills, training, and education.”
An arts and science undergraduate student at Nipissing University would see a reduction of $660 in their 2019-20 academic year tuition.
A student attending Canadore College enrolled in the Post Production program would see a $470 reduction.
Canadore President George Burton told Baytoday that, "We're a little surprised that the 10 per cent was across the board for colleges and universities because colleges are the cheapest option for post-secondary study, not only in Ontario but in the country. We would rather have seen the tuition frameworks separated between the colleges and universities.
"The other piece of this is we're happy to see there have been some provisions to assist small and northern colleges to adjust in 2019 and that the government is committed to a sustainability plan again for small and northern colleges. We will adjust and accommodate this reduction and look forward to working with the government.
"It does mean a funding reduction to the colleges to the tune of about 80 million across the sector. To us, it creates a challenge of a little over a million dollars."
As part of its overall reform of postsecondary education affordability, Fullerton also announced that that the Government will be refocusing the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) to ensure it remains sustainable and viable for future students while directing a greater proportion of OSAP funding to families with the greatest financial need says a news release.
“The previous government believed in handing out OSAP money to some of Ontario’s highest income earners with virtually no meaningful criteria for success,” said Fullerton. “It is no surprise that student enrolment has remained flat while tuition rates skyrocketed. Instead of using OSAP to indirectly subsidize future rounds of tuition hikes, we will focus our resources on the families in greatest need while challenging our partners in the postsecondary sector to deliver better value for the high tuitions they already charge.”
The Minister also announced a Student Choice Initiative, giving every student in Ontario the freedom to choose which student fees they want to pay, and how that money will be allocated. Fees for essential health and safety initiatives will continue to be mandatory.
Student fees in Ontario can range as high as $2,000 per year and often forced students to pay for services they do not use and organizations they do not support. The opt-out initiative will ensure students have transparency and freedom of choice regarding the campus services and organizations which get access to their money.
“We are making postsecondary education more affordable in Nipissing through these historic reforms, refocusing supports to our students and families who need it most,” said MPP Vic Fedeli. “These changes give students the freedom of choice about how their money is spent and restores accountability, affordability, and access to postsecondary education while giving more of our students opportunities to find a job and build a career right here in Ontario.”
It's the first time Ontario student tuition has decreased across all funding-eligible programs.
Average university tuition in Ontario has increased significantly since the mid-1990s and is currently the highest in any Canadian province.
The Auditor General recently tabled a report highlighting concerns with the way OSAP was administered, as well as drastic overspending. The report concluded that despite the previous government’s excessive spending, OSAP did not result in proportionately higher enrolment.
Visit the OSAP page to learn more and try the OSAP calculator
