OPSEU Local 596

No. The Liberals have promised an up-front grant to students which will amount to $1,600 for undergraduate students and $730 for college students. This grant will not stop tuition fees from rising and the Liberals have said they will not announce their plan for tuition fees until after they’re elected.

IS EVERYONE ELIGIBLE FOR THE GRANT?

No. The following is a list of students who will not be eligible for the grant:

• Students in professional programs, who pay the highest fees, are not eligible for the program. In fact, their fee increases will be subsidizing the grants in part. Because the highest cost programs won’t be included, the least accessible fields of education will remain further out of reach for low- and middle-income students.
• Students who fall from clear standing will lose the grant.
• International students are not eligible for the grant.
• Part-time students are ineligible for the grant and students who move from full-time to part-time status will lose the grant.
• Students whose parents make over $160,000 annually will also be ineligible, even if their parents do not subsidize their education.

Graduate students are ineligible for the grant, even though they have less access to provincial student financial assistance and pay higher fees.

I HEARD THE GRANT IS WORTH 30 PER CENT OF THE COST OF TUITION FEES. IS THIS TRUE?

No. The Liberals have excluded tuition fees from professional programs in their average calculation, which are higher than other programs. The average undergraduate tuition fee is $6,300, according to Statistics Canada, but the Liberal Party says it is $5,400. This is problematic because professional programs have the highest tuition fees, and excluding them from the calculation skews the average to be lower, and denies students enrolled in them from needed financial aid. For example, if you were a student in business administration at the University of Toronto, this grant would only comprise 13 per cent of your fees. This grant also does not cover ancillary fees.

DOES THIS GRANT MAKE EDUCATION MORE AFFORDABLE?

The best way to increase the accessibility of college and university is to reduce tuition fees. This grant will help many students afford the high cost of tuition fees, but it may also justify more tuition fee increases, and more student debt. Up-front grants like this are good and students have long been calling for more grants, but real accessibility means reducing and eliminating all financial barriers.

WHAT’S THIS ABOUT SATELLITE CAMPUSES?

Existing satellite campuses in Ontario have been plagued by low educational quality and confusing governance structures where local autonomy is trumped by decision makers in another region of the province. Students have been highly critical of any plans to expand undergraduate education while at the same time not hiring more professors or guaranteeing that all the courses students require to finish their degrees will be available at all campuses. The Liberals are also promising that these campuses will be undergraduate-only; there will be no graduate education or research opportunities. This could mean that students will have lower quality professors, as most professors try to work where they can teach and research together.

IS THIS THE BEST POLICY IN THE ELECTION?

This is going to be a hard promise for the other parties to beat. While it would have been best to target the up-front costs by reducing tuition fees, this is still a significant investment into up-front student grants. Check out the political party report card when it is available and make sure you are communicating updates to your members. Things could change at any time.

THE LAST WORD

The Liberals have indicated that this is supposed to be the final platform policy but, as we have seen time and time again, updates, changes and clarifications are common when an election is underway. This document contains what has been made clear so far, but stay tuned for possible updates and share anything you learn with the Ontario Executive.