Students do not think that the loans and grants program announced by government the same day that Memorial University hiked tuition will cut it.
The tuition freeze had been in place for over 20 years but the government subsidy to cover the difference is being eliminated over the next five years. MUN acted accordingly by raising the rates for both domestic and international students.
Government increased financial support for students to help offset the increase but Katherine McLaughlin, NL Chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students, says we need more people in this province, not fewer.
With the cost of living and travel costs higher in this province than in the rest of Atlantic Canada, she says we needed to maintain the advantage of lower tuition. She also notes that the loans and grants are for students from this province only—not internationals.
She says the grants and loans only go so far and don’t always help the people who need it most as they may not have the structure in place to navigate the process and apply for the loans.